Space Between
by SamanthaTL
Summary: Peeta reaches his tipping point. When enough is enough, would you fight for space to place the matters of the heart? Post Hunger Games only.
1. Chapter 1: Rise and Shine

AUTHOR'S NOTES: I started writing fanfic during the prime of X-Files. Mulder and Scully has since passed down the torch to Katniss & Peeta for me. This would be the first fanfic I am actually publishing. Please stick around; for this is a work in progress. I am always open to questions, comments, so if you have the time, don't forget to drop a review! :3

DISCLAIMER: THESE BRILLIANT CRAZY CHARACTERS ARE NOT MINE TO HOLD. THEY'RE SUZY'S.

* * *

**"RYSNSHYN"**

The license plate reads on a red hover car parked on a driveway of a white brick house, followed by heavy taps of designer shoes, crisp against the concrete. He lets himself in through the door without knocking, knowing his presence was anticipated. Housemaids donned in simple navy blue uniform nod in acknowledgement as he walks by, and then he finally settles in a dining chair. He dismisses them with a nod.

His father appears from an open arched door, wiping his hand on his apron.

"Dad, I hired all sorts of chefs for you," he frowns, glancing at a chubby man in a chef outfit standing dubiously with a pot of boiling water.

"Peeta," he says, delighted at the sight of his son. "I was just preparing dough-," Peeta has stood back up and cuts him off by engulfing him in an embrace, some of the flour on his apron leaving a mark on his dress shirt.

A change has molded Peeta while residing in Capitol. He wears expensive cologne and suits on a daily basis, gifts from his sponsors and endorsers, supporters and fans. His hair is longer, the black tips slightly graze the corners of his strong jaws, brushed back and always slick, never a strand out of place. He sports an immaculate black suit with silver trim all over, cuff links made of diamonds.

His father shoos him away into the living room and a housemaid brings him a tall orange juice as soon as he plops down into the couch.

"Son, I have great news. Chefs Elite want you to be their guest judge for a baking feature. They have contacted me, and they're excited to have you on their show!" he is ecstatic.

Peeta smiles initially, then his lips quickly straighten out to a line.

"When is this?"

"Next month," he gushes, untying the strings of the apron, "These opportunities are wonderful!"

Peeta's eyes are fixed on a spot on the carpet. "I have meetings with Mackie most of next month. He's showing me potential locations for the second bakery installment in south Capitol,"

"But this is great exposure on television,"

"Dad I'm *always* on television. In fact, I'm everywhere," he snaps back, surprised at his own agitation.

Ever since he and Katniss Everdeen were announced victors at the 74th Hunger Games, they were the entire craze in Capitol, glorifying the boy with the bread with the girl on fire. Everybody was head over heels over anything Peeta created, and both gained so much popularity that President Snow himself invited them to live in the Capitol, much to the citizen's delight. The Mellarks jumped on this chance, a golden opportunity to prosper their business. They encouraged Peeta to take advantage of his celebrity status, helping him with production and supply of bread, cakes and pies, pushing him to capitalize on the market of celebrity desserts, which was at that time, untapped.

He stars in commercials, his face on print ads promoting sportswear or sports equipment, on billboards in the over-glamorous and over-superficial city center.

His popularity spread like wildfire, while Katniss abruptly upped and disappeared.

Rumors had it that she either ran barreling back to District 12 because the spotlight was too much for her to handle, or because she decided to choose Gale in the end, depending on who you ask in the Capitol.

They became fodder for tabloids. Everybody's favorite gossip. The media adored them. Until Katniss' disappearance dissipated as merely a background story and Peeta continued to shine on center stage. It has earned him much sympathy, and has effortlessly made him more loved.

He walks through the doors of his bakery, greeted by customers with smiles and kind words upon seeing him. A tall, lanky middle-aged man approaches him with a fat folder tucked in his arms, his orange highlights as bright as the icing on the latest cupcake craze.

"Yes, we call these little heavenly cupcakes 'Sweet Sunset'", Mackie, his business coach, exclaims, running high on sugar, pointing at the cupcake rack.

Peeta's face saddens a little, then shakes his head at a memory buried long ago, quickly replacing it with a half smile.

"Here is the monthly report. You will be very pleased with the numbers. Highest profit since you opened the business. You're doing swell, young man." Mackie pushes the envelope into Peeta's hands, pats his back and leaves.

"Can you also send me a hologram version?" Peeta calls out over his shoulder. Mackie points his finger upwards and twirls it, his gesture for "ok".

More customers are noticing him now, congregating by the cakes section, as his phone beeps.

A love-struck text from Tinsel flashes on the screen of his phone, fat animated hearts beating against pink background. He ignores it, turns on his heels and heads for the doors, waving goodbye to people.

He has never felt so alone in his life.

* * *

There is a cool tinge in the air. It's bleak in District 12, even in the summer.

More than halfway across the land, Prim combs Katniss' wavy brown hair down her back. She sections them into three parts, and crisscrosses them into a braid. Their mother is folding clothes and piling them neatly in a wicker basket, shooting glances at her daughters across the living room, seated by the windows. She looks exasperated, eyebrows wrinkled in anger.

Katniss glances back at her mother and huffs in irritation as she notes her displeased face. She finds it ridiculous, the thought of her and her mother sizing each other up. The second hand of the wall clock ticks on.

"I have to do it. I need to fetch it, mom. No one else would. And there is no other alternative," Katniss revs the engine, breaking the humming silence.

"You can't travel under your condition, especially back to Capitol. That place is mad! And look at you," her mother waves her hand up and down at her, "You're risking—"

"You want to talk about taking risks and putting my life on the line? Don't you think I'm well acquainted with danger already?" Katniss could feel Prim shrinking behind her.

"Yes, and that is why you're staying away from it from now on," her mother pauses, clutching at the white blanket sprawled on the counter. "Send Gale," she suggests calmly, neutralizing her growing anger.

Katniss lets out a noise, half from her nose and half from the back of her throat. "That is not going to happen. Let's keep Gale out of this."

"Even if you were successful in acquiring it, what makes you think there are no consequences from taking it?"

"If I don't take it, I lose everything."

Her mother throws her hand in the air, picks up the wicker basket, and marches up the stairs, straight-faced.

Prim finishes the braid with a red elastic band, steps in front of Katniss and smiles at the approval of her work. Katniss thanks her, reaches out and pinches her cheek. She has grown so much, her little sister. She's taller now, and slim, her hair turning dirtier blonde as she ages.

She is beaming at Katniss, anticipation and excitement in her eyes.

"So?," she starts questioningly. "Max?"

Katniss looks at her, tilting her head to the side as if she's clueless. Then her pursed lips relax, slowly creeping into a big smile.

"Vera? How about Chryssa, short for Chrysanthemum? I have always liked that flower," Prim continues.

Katniss shrugs her shoulder, a sudden wave of fatigue slamming into her body. She checks the time on the clock. It's 3 pm. She yearns for another nap.

Prim slides to her side, offering her shoulder for support as Katniss slowly emerges from her seat, murmuring her thanks, confused, whether or not to be overjoyed, or miserable, a quick smile flashing across her face at a distant thought, just before her face contorts in hurt. She lifts her chin as she looks forward, then tries to locate her feet below, her hormones bouncing wildly at her, emotionally tearing her apart, as she places her free hand gently on her big, swollen belly.

Gale storms through the front door, unannounced. Katniss and Prim jerk back, startled, feet poised above the first step of the stairs.

"Your mom called me earlier this morning. She was frantic. Where do you think you're going?" he asks, catching his breath gracelessly.

"To my bedroom, thank you," answers Katniss with a blank look on her face.

"I will go. Just stay here and take care of yourself," Gale says, feet moving slowly forward, as if walking amongst the mines. "This is no time to be stubborn."

"I'll be fine Gale. I can take care of myself. It'd be easier for me because my mother knows the individual I will be seeking help from."

"Katniss, think of all the problems you will stir if you were spotted, if you do go." Gale says.

"I'll have a bigger problem if I don't go. Why does everyone make this to be a death trap mission? I just need something very important. I won't be long, ok Gale?" she said reassuringly, in a tone that indicates the conversation is over.


	2. Chapter 2: The Glitz and the Glamour

One Sunday a month Peeta sets aside purely for rest day. He strips down the hair gel, knocks off the fancy clothes and shoes, and dresses in khakis and plain grey shirt, strolling in the park he discovered tucked away in a quiet part of downtown.

He is often occupied with full business schedule. Sometimes he's convinced that he simply does not want any of his thoughts trailing back to Katniss. He wants to suppress the questions and the hurt he feels inside, burying it underneath the money and the fame.

He's tired of wondering, and feeling sorry for himself.

The park is littered with yellow bell trees and clusters of man-made ponds inhabited by glowing white angel fish. He digs his hand into one of his pockets subconsciously, rubbing a metallic mockingjay pin he keeps with him wherever he goes.

He snickers at the sudden sight of a puffy cloud of purple cotton candy in front of him, as it slowly moves downwards, revealing a giddy Tinsel Kay behind.

"I thought I'd find you here," she says, leaning in on him, almost purring.

"Hi Tinsel. How was the fashion show?"

"It was fabulous. Things went well without any model drama. I have acquired two more shows to coordinate" she pauses to giggle, "I love it!"

Straight, bleached blonde hair frames her diamond shaped face well, and she's wearing her usual baby blue lipstick and her eyelids lined with baby blue eye liner. She is one of Capitol's trendy socialites from a very wealthy family. "What are you doing here anyway? There's nothing here…"

"I'm just enjoying the view. I need the quiet sometimes. I need to step out, be alone, and remind myself who I really am," Peeta takes a quick sweep across the park, and realizes Tinsel's mere disinterest when she starts to type into her phone.

"Are you taking me to the gala? It's this Saturday," Tinsel ignores what he said, dismissing it as if it was irrelevant. "I have an Amelie dress perfect for the night!"

"Right," he quips. She is talking about the Annual Victors' Gala to be held in the President's mansion. It's a grand, star-studded event celebrated by the leaders of Panem and the Hunger Games Victors accumulated over the years. Peeta can't seem to give enough care about it. He is more struck by the thought of how achingly colorful and artificial it is in the Capitol, a glaring opposite of his hometown. Today, the Capitol's sky is tinted a light periwinkle.

"You're thinking of her again aren't you," she disturbs his little daydream.

Peeta glares at her, as if she was curling and transforming into a rabid dog. His lips form an O, as if about to speak, but holds it still.

"She's not good for you Peeta. When are you going to realize that? She left you without a decent explanation. Probably shacking up with her pretend cousin-"

"Enough!" Peeta heard himself in an angry tone.

"It was for the television after all," she turns around, her dress turning lavishly in mid air. "Pick me up at seven." And with that, she strides away, heels clicking with authority.

Peeta stands frozen as strangers resume their stroll walking past him, pretending not to have eavesdropped. He doesn't know whether to be embarrassed by Tinsel, or just feel indifferent, as he has never taken Tinsel seriously.

He suddenly finds himself side-blinded by an abrupt pang of melancholy, his gaze eerily transfixed on a whirl of cloud in the sky.

But as quick as the sadness hit him, it is replaced by a scowl. He inhales sharply and clenches his jaws, his hand in his pocket now gripping the mockingjay pin in resentment.

* * *

Katniss walks briskly on a sidewalk, passing through restaurants and shops, eyes downcast, careful not to bump shoulders with the crowd. The bangs over her forehead are long and wispy and slanted to the left, shade in auburn red.

She's wearing a loose cloak over her purple dress, pretty but not too flashy. There is not much makeup on her face, except a very bright red lipstick. She fishes a piece of paper in her clutch bag and tries to memorize the address written on it. She veers off and turns left at a busy intersection and brightens at the familiarity of the street presented to her.

On the far end of the avenue, three set of lights ahead, sits the Medicinal Technology of Capitol. MEDTECC. She reaches back into the bag and grabs the other piece of paper, the one thing that she had the most difficulty in obtaining, even harder than finding the location of the innovative facility. Her mother's signature on a prescription.

While Katniss delved into the Hunger Games, her mother turned away and occupied her sorrowful mind with medicine and sciences. After the crowning of Katniss as one of the victors, her mother and Prim were invited to live in the Capitol. Their mother saw this as an opportunity of a lifetime, an opportunity she knew will never be presented while residing in 12. She progressed successfully from an apothecary to being a doctor.

Although, their residency in the Capitol did not last, she took Prim and moved back to the district, knowing she could make a bigger difference in helping the citizens in her hometown.

Katniss shoves the paper back in securely and rearranges her cloak, mentally picking a coffee shop she could stop over and rest. Three small confetti-covered televisions sitting behind the glass wall of a clothes store catch her attention, volume loud enough for her to hear from outside. She pauses from her walk and watches, wondering when the show was aired live.

On the screen is Peeta sitting on a red couch as a guest in a popular late night talk show, looking smug and confident, while the host and audience laugh loud in unison.

Peeta has a sheepish look on his face, and then cocks an eyebrow at the audience. Another round of ear-shattering laughter fills the set.

"Ok Mr. Mellark, on to a more serious tone," the host tries to calm down by taking comical deep breaths. "Esquire Magazine has your face on their next issue, its focus zooming in on your entrepreneurial skills and successes. What do you say to this, what do you say..." Wildon Wilikin trails while wrestling with the magazine and flaps the page open to a close up of Peeta's face occupying the first two pages, and underneath huge, bold letters:

**'WATCH OUT:'**

**'YOUNGEST ENTREPRENEUR TAKES THE CAKE AND EATS IT TOO'**

"This, Mr. Mellark, what do you say to something like this?! You are Esquire List's Entrepreneur of the Year!"

Peeta shakes his head modestly and shoots a shy smile at the camera, and pauses from speaking because of the thunderous noise coming from the crowd.

"Wow, that is truly incredible, thank you. Thanks to everyone for support," he nods at the audience, "and thank you Esquire, for the recognition, and more importantly for choosing this particular picture..." He points at his face blown up in the magazine pages.

"Yes you look quite dashing on this photoshoot I must say," Wildon says, still holding up the magazine below his chin, peering down on it.

"This was when they dyed my hair black and I decided to keep it."

"Black is definitely your color. I don't know, what do the ladies think?!" Wildon turns to the crowd, waving the magazine at the camera. This gets a nice high pitched response of approval from girls.

A smile forms on Katniss' lips before she could catch herself. She unglues her eyes from the screen and starts to continue her walk, readying to jump back into the milling crowd. As soon as she takes a step forward her shoulder collides into someone who is trying to reach the door handle to the clothes shop.

The man's arm reflexively swings upward, hastily pushing through the door. He mumbles an apology and does a double take on Katniss; on a standstill gaping at him.

The man pauses and searches Katniss' face, a feeling of familiarity dawning on him.


	3. Chapter 3: White Halls

"Excuse me," the man says before she could twitch a muscle, studying her eyes, the round of her cheeks, little pout on her lips. She doesn't move. She looks as dumbfounded as him.

He closes the distance between them with a stretched arm, aiming for her face, but his fingers sweep the long bangs off her forehead aside, and confirms his silent assumption.

Her voice comes out as a croak.

"Peeta."

His eyes painfully drag down towards her obvious bump of a stomach, blinking at it, not knowing how to react.

He is caught in a whirlwind of his own thoughts, entangled in questions, the sight of a red-headed, very pregnant Katniss waking the dragon of his mind that he has been trying to slay.

His memory is overworking and it shoves him back to that Friday afternoon in late November, coming home from a meeting with his marketing and PR directors. Everything was pushing through for his first, highly anticipated bakery store, few days close to the unveiling of 'BreadRun'.

He checked his watch twice, gauging how much time he had before Katniss would come home for the day. Her role was the buyer, travelling from market to market within the Capitol, and sometimes as far as District 2, canvassing for top quality ingredients and equipment for the business.

Peeta had a good three hour window in between.

Two hours in, he was able to line up 5 freshly baked, medium-sized sponge cakes on the dining table. He whipped out the chocolate curls, flower candies, and decorating bags plump with chocolate and strawberry frosting. Even when he was rushing, he knew how to work with grace under pressure. He straightened his back, tired from hunching over the table decorating the cakes with intricate, colorful designs, and mentally pats himself in the back. The sun had finally set. Katniss should be walking in soon.

He stood back, letting himself a good overview of all the cakes. There is an intense kind of concentration he allows himself before finishing off a job. He turned to head for the stairs and showered, spent a good long while in front of his closet wondering what to wear. He beamed at the sight of a simple white shirt and washed out jeans, securing his belt. And in his jean pocket sat cozily a blue suede jewelry box.

A small piece of paper caught his attention, sitting on an end table by their bed. He picked it up slowly, recognizing Katniss' careless handwriting. His eyebrows furrowed in confusion over reading the sentences scribbled across the paper.

_"I won't be returning. I'm sorry I have to go. Let me be."_

He wasn't fully registering what was happening. A part of him thought it was a joke, like when Katniss used to tell him if she doesn't see any wild turkeys gallivanting in the Capitol she will start shooting her arrows through people's pet cats. She didn't usually joke much, and whenever she did, it was bad.

He put the paper neatly back on the table in the same fashion he found it, turned around, and slid out of the room, feet heavy.

His eyes were not focusing on anything in particular. All he felt were his legs leading him to the stair landing overlooking the living room and the wide dining room below.

He leaned on the railing, as if he suddenly could not carry his own weight anymore, staring downcast at the arrangement of cakes he previously made on the dining table. Each cake, lavishly designed, emphasized with one cursive word in the middle.

**Katniss Will You Marry Me**

The aftermath that ate Peeta Mellark alive consisted of endless flashes of cameras pointing at his face, catching him off-guard, at one point almost permanently damaging his eyes. Paparazzi poised and waited by his driveway to interrogate him about Katniss' disappearance. He could not walk the streets of downtown without being chased by a microphone and a video recorder. Growing tired of the whole charade he finally started interacting with the interviewers, merely responding with "That's funny, I don't know either."

He had finally learned to accept what happened for what it was, and made an agreement with himself to keep some of his dignity and to shut her out of his life the way she did him.

He remembers her clearly from that final morning; when she leaned in to give him a very long kiss goodbye before heading out through the front door, long brown hair tied up in a pony tail, not meaning to return.

* * *

His mind returns to the ground, and he reflexively springs backwards, like a cat on guard, his focus now back up on her face. She looks unsettled, like she's about to hurl. The lazy summer heat was creeping up on her with intensity she could not contain, clawing at her skin. She's sweating, and dizzy, and she wants to throw herself at Peeta and sob into his immaculate shirt, aims to push out an apology through her lips but chokes instead. She is seeing him looking at her with a bit of concern but still angry on the edges. She is speechless, and staring at Peeta, who is currently surrounded by a hazy border filled with floating specks of light. They explode and burn out, and she faints.

There is soft white radiance flooding her vision as her eyes flutter open. She hears incessant beeps coming from her right side, and a single tube running into her nose. Her cloak and purple dress are gone, and she's in a thin hospital gown with blankets draped over her.

She squints and tries to make out the image directly above, peering down at her. She groans as the fuzzy lines click together and the sight of Haymitch completely materializes.

"Diagnosis: Fatigue and disorientation," he taps on the clipboard in his hand. "I never could have perceived you as a weakling."

"Hey, you're here," she greeted him, "You're…not…in…Twelve, anymore?" The drugs enabling her to communicate have kicked in higher gear, causing her to feel and see waves.

"Let's not get too carried away girl. I was invited to the Gala," there is a frown on his face. "Effie nags that I should make nice with the big wigs here. She insists I be social, as if I'm not. So now she's my date."

He waggles his eyebrows and she lightly snorts in amusement. Katniss wonders if her invitation has met the garbage bin at the home she shared with Peeta. Her thoughts fly back to how weak and boneless she feels.

"You gave lover boy quite a scare out there. You both attracted a pretty large crowd. Old habits huh," he continues. There is a grin on his scruffy face.

She winces at the word lover boy.

"Where's Peeta?"

"I told the boy to go for a walk. He had been sitting here for a while so I kicked him out."

She groans louder and brings up her hand to touch her stomach. "Well, by the look on your face I guess I am still in one piece."

"Not sure about that one piece part. Looks like you brought company," Haymitch points his lips toward her bump. "I'm well aware you're tired but, you have a lot of explanations, sweetheart."

Outside of the hospital, Peeta paces back and forth kicking pebbles on the sidewalk.

Him, Katniss, and a little one. This excites him beyond imagination that he begins to mentally jot down possible names for a boy or girl. A rushed image of him happily holding a flailing baby nestled in soft pink blanket flashes in his mind. And Katniss was there looking on. Almost like…a family.

He has been waiting for this moment, to be able to provide for his own, to love and to nurture, and he's prepared to sacrifice everything he has and do whatever it takes for it to be harmonious, unlike the tense and awful environment he grew up in due to his mother's maltreatment.

He wants to be able to give something he was deprived of.


	4. Chapter 4: Bittersweet

All the happy thoughts dissolve at the doors of reality, the one that Katniss has pushed forward. Simply put, he was not in her idea of the future. The act of deserting him at such an important stage of their lives was enough for him to conclude that he is not needed. Suddenly his train of thought stops and takes a completely different turn, and starts to doubt the paternity of the baby.

He sits on a wooden bench; his head buried in his hands, and silently weeps.

By the time he is back in the room, Haymitch has bolted off and Katniss has emerged from the bed, tube removed, and standing by the window with her arms perched on the ledge. Her purple dress and cloak are draped over the armchair on the counter.

He stands in the middle of the room, awkward and wordless. But his presence is so demanding, she automatically turns and leaves the window, approaching him with calculated steps.

"I understand if I'm not your favourite person right now. You deserved more than a cold pair of feet," she starts.

His eyes flit upwards to avoid her gaze. He looks void of emotions.

"I always knew you would fumble back to Gale. And now it looks like you got more than you bargained for. Good for you," he snipes sarcastically.

"Peeta," her lips are quivering and she could feel her knees buckle. She is terrified, and feels horrible, struggling to string her words together. "This baby is yours." There's something deep and intense with the way her eyes are forcing a dance with his.

It comes in a quick flash, his face brightening at her declaration. His eyes soften, but there is a cloud of doubt in the back of his mind. He shakes his head, trying to ward off the rage that is brewing inside him.

"I don't know Katniss. Gale is quite handsome. Ask everyone."

"Will you quit it with Gale? I'm not with him," she doesn't realize her tone has hiked up a notch and she finds herself trembling. If there is one thing Peeta finds rare, it's Katniss breaking down. He wants to sweep her into an embrace but he doesn't allow himself.

"As soon as I found out about this pregnancy, I could not imagine raising her here," she continues.

Everything is suddenly a blur. It's a girl, Peeta beams gleefully inside. His lips are twitching achingly into a smile, but he refuses it, and it makes it ache even more. His breathing has become heavier, and he finds himself drawn to a chair.

"She'll be taken away and thrown into the games by default."

And you think hiding in District 12 will stop the game makers, he stomps internally. His mind is spinning, and the only thing that is motionless in his vision is Katniss, standing in front of him with a worried look on her face. He is looking at her with fierce intensity, screening all the words he could say to her. But he is hurt. He is so hurt that he curls inwards and clutches his stomach subconsciously.

"You couldn't be bothered by asking me if I wanted to leave and come back home with you?"

"You were happy doing what you loved. Your family was so proud of you, Peeta. You were charging your way headfirst into success. I was happy for you, and I didn't want to rob you of any of it."

"You tried to rob me of a daughter," his eyes are dark but sad. He's never felt so betrayed. "That's outweighs everything else."

She hangs her head low, hand on her stomach, eyes brimming with tears.

"I'm very sorry, Peeta. I know leaving in haste was wrong. But I felt it was the best decision at that time," her gaze lifts up to meet his. She wants him to know her apology is sincere.

Yet he can't help but still be bitter. She feels like a stranger to him, and he finds it very uncomfortable. Realizing that she did not mean to come across him on the sidewalk and it was all by chance did not add to the relief of randomly seeing her and knowing she's well and alive.

"So…what now?" he makes a general gesture around the hospital room. "What brought you here?" He isn't intending to sound rude. He just does.

"There's something wrong. The baby might not make it out alive."

* * *

Peeta careens his way through the crowd with Katniss in tow in the sterile halls of MEDTECC, gripping her hand tight, maintaining eye contact with her and glancing at her stomach, as if she would disappear behind him if he doesn't.

Peeta decides there is no space for anymore negative vibes and apologies; there is something more urgent now that needs attention. The endangered life of an unborn child. His child, he tries to wrap his head around it. Katniss explained to him that her mother's Capitol-manufactured facility in District 12 subjected her to rounds of testing five months into pregnancy after she experienced harsh fevers that lasted for weeks. It was concluded that the tracker jacker venom she suffered and endured in the Hunger Games was dormant until the process and materialization of the pregnancy had triggered its molecules to become active again, threatening to taint the baby once it tries to push out of the womb.

There is but only one cure to counter the venom, a type of serum, mere drops of it, and it can only be found in the Capitol.

He halts at a door with a name plate that says Dr. Parenti in gold trim, and glances at Katniss before he knocks. A graying old man with large glasses greets them knowingly, and makes room to allow them in.

Dr. Parenti mentions that Mrs. Everdeen had been in contact with him since Katniss' mission departure to Capitol. The serum was actually the product child of one of the curative projects deep in field research, deferred and delayed for too long. Dr. Parenti spearheaded the project, with Mrs. Everdeen joining the group near the tail-end of the study.

The purpose was solely for Capitol citizens, women specifically, who were victimized by the remaining few tracker jackers lurking in the outskirts of the city. Since the last fatality of a fetus was broadcasted in the whole Panem, a district-wide elimination of the mutt insects was implemented.

Katniss finds her hand tangled with Peeta's as they walk out of the doctor's office, overjoyed with relief, a tiny bottle of serum holding all the importance in the world to her. They pause as the door clicks shut behind them, and give each other wide grins.

They are startled by the sound of incoming footsteps, surprised by the sight of a dismayed Effie Trinkett, arms crossed in front of her, donned in silver polka dots and cherry hair. Her eyes survey Katniss up and down, agape.

"Oh my goodness Katniss!," she's almost twinkling in delight, hand clamping her mouth. "You are huge!"

Katniss rolls her eyes as Peeta dips his head low to conceal his smile.

"Good to see you too Effie," Katniss quips. Effie leans in to give her a kiss on the cheek and fusses over her stomach as if it was a puppy.

"A birdie told me you were back in town!" her tone rises with each word towards the end of the sentence.

"Was the birdie drunk?" Peeta asks, finally letting go of Katniss' hand. It catches her how quickly she missed his warmth. Effie ignores him.

"Look at you two! Or three, I must say!" she cackles at her own humor as Katniss and Peeta look on engrossed by her enthusiasm. "I assume all the explanations and apologies have been exchanged?" she's suddenly cool and serious, head tilted towards Katniss.

"We'll be alright, Effie," she glances at Peeta for a nod of reassurance, but he is staring at the floor under Effie's shoes. Effie holds eye contact with her, expecting clarification on what really transpired between her and Peeta.

An uncomfortable gap of silence stretches to what felt like forever, Peeta's eyes now settling on the wall behind Effie's head.

"Good! All is forgiven, and maybe forgotten!," Effie is bouncy again. "Katniss, the Victor's Gala is this Saturday night. We shall see you there."

Katniss is about to protest as Peeta steps in.

"Her attendance may have to depend on her condition, Effie. I would love for her to be there too, but I'd rather have her rest if she's not physically up for it. Gotta take care of our baby."

Effie's face softens into mush and makes a squealing sound as she gives both their shoulders a quick squeeze goodbye.

It is a long trek out of the facility, with silence accompanying Katniss and Peeta. There is an air of uncertainty hanging between them, a kind of awkwardness that needs resolution. It feels like ground zero for them again. And Katniss hates it, because she doesn't know how to rebuild what she wrecked, and her emotions are battling with her.

Peeta finally says something as they reach the benches lined outside the front of the building, near the line of bushes.

"When are you leaving? Are you going to be alright travelling back?"

This strikes Katniss as a sign of final defeat and departure on Peeta's side. She feels he has totally let go of her, of the idea of 'them'. Is this it, she asks herself, has she completely lost the boy who enabled her heart to love?

Her eyes are set but her mind is haywire, working on a fast speed to develop a new plan. There is a dire need to take action, and she needs to take it now. She has to close the rift she created between her and Peeta.


	5. Chapter 5: Crossing Bridges

"I, uhh, I actually leave on Sunday. So I'm here for a while," she says, suddenly having a hard time meeting his eyes.

"Ok," he starts to turn but stops himself as if he forgot something, "Do you need a ride? Are you staying anywhere nearby?"

"I'm staying at Trillium Hotel. A ride would be nice," Katniss perks up.

The car ride was short and painless. Peeta remains a gentleman and guides her in and out of his hover car with a firm hand on the small of her back. He avoids hand holding this time, and seems to have cooled down all the tempers and other emotions that have flared up in the earlier events. He is drained, and he's not hiding it.

He leads her to the lobby of the hotel, and by this time Katniss is fighting with herself whether or not to invite him up to her room, playing with the idea of offering him a cold beverage for an extended stay. Buying a little bit more time with him, she thought. Her reverie is disturbed by Peeta's series of "Hey Katniss", trying to catch her attention.

"Hi. I'm still here you know," Peeta jokes, his hand gesturing up and down his face.

She finds herself dumbly delighted by what he just said. It was almost music to her ears. She shifts her weight from one foot to the other, grinning like a fool.

"Send my regards to your family. It's good to see you again Katniss," he leans in close, and places a kiss on her forehead.

She watches the back of his head disappear into the crowd through the main door. And then he's gone.

She asks to borrow the phone sitting on the reception and dials a number. A crackled voice speaks to her on the other line.

"Can I re-book my train ride to this coming Sunday please? Charge on the same account," she asks into the receiver, aiming to extend her stay. She nods and writes a reference number on a piece of paper and hangs up the phone.

She pulls out a train ticket from her bag and rips it apart, sending it flying into the bin behind the reception desk. The ripped ticket supposedly scheduled for a ten a.m. trip the next day.

* * *

Night falls, and she's fidgeting in bed, trapped in unease within the walls of her hotel room. She did not mean to see Peeta on the street. She did not mean to be visited by Haymitch, nor Effie in the hospital. She did not mean to cause a commotion, hailing the paramedics and a herd of peacekeepers. She just desperately needed the serum for the baby.

Now she's riding on guilt streaks and confusion. Seeing Peeta again triggered emotions she thought she had painfully suppressed. She notes the effervescent flash of joy that crossed his face when she mentioned that the baby is a girl. Did she really want to leave mysteriously, disappear into the wild beyond the non-existent District 13 and raise a child estranged from her father? What kind of explanation would she offer to neutralize curiosities, once she starts asking questions? What made her think there is a life as exiles, shut off from the civilized world, building shelters from scratch, hauling their daughter across the land?

* * *

The clock reads 6:55 am when the ringing of the phone roused Peeta to half consciousness. His arm flings across the bed reaching for the phone and pushes himself to a sitting position, letting the blanket fall off his bare chest, and shivers from a hint of cold. He grimaces as Tinsel's high pitched voice comes too close to provoking a headache first thing in the morning.

"Good morning lover!" she greets him.

"Tinsel-"

"Oh it's terrible. I just woke up from a nightmare, Peeta! I dreamt I lost you. You were banished from Panem! It felt too real!" she's half sobbing and half groggy from slumber. "And your bakeries…they burnt them down!"

"I'm here…calm down now. I'm still here," he coos into the phone.

"You know, if ever something goes wrong for you here, if ever you have to run away, I will follow you. And it doesn't matter where. I would leave the Capitol! You know that right?"

Peeta was almost amused by how ludicrous she sounds. But it sure does feel nice to have someone attempting to care for him, he thinks.

"Even if there are no glitters and makeup in the wilderness?" he is smiling now, emerged off the bed and feet dragging across the hardwood floor.

"I'm sorry I was being terrible to you the other day. I was very…stressed." Tinsel refers to their recent rendezvous in the downtown park.

A bulb sparks in his mind and he wonders if Tinsel knows about Katniss' unexpected reappearance in downtown. With all the cameras that encircled them while the ambulance picked up Katniss and raced down the hospital, it does not take long for the media to fully react and eject tabloid and entertainment news material.

"It's alright. Let's just not mention her again," he suggests. He saunters to the long window and flips the shutters open to let sunlight in. Another glorious summer day welcomes him as the silhouette of a flock of birds cross the light pink horizon, cars stream in and out of busy streets, some Capitol attendants sweeping off the sidewalks clean with well-oiled machines. He could see the starting foundation of downtown area to his left, tall majestic trees lining up the border.

He takes a full breath of air, chin up, feeling eerily optimistic and cheery. He has an epiphany of how good life is to him at the moment, and mentally flushes any inch of doubt. His gaze drifts slowly down onto the street below him and he feels his heart constrict for one second as he spots Katniss, standing on his driveway, arms crossed, her head darting around. She finally looks up to the window where he is standing by, his face quizzical, the phone still plastered to his ear, and he finally catches her eyes. The corners of her lips curl up to a smile.

* * *

They walk side by side, arms and hands loosely swinging at their sides, testing distance. They pick a bistro to have breakfast together, not minding all the looks and quiet gasps around them on a main street. Everybody seems to be giving space and respect though, and not clamoring around them for a change.

Peeta decided to sit on the patio outside so they could both enjoy the weather, eager to get a hold of the menu. He orders poached eggs and ham with herbed potatoes while Katniss chooses a bowl of fruits and blueberry pancakes with breakfast sausages. Peeta gapes at her as she inhales her food.

"Eating for two," she shrugs and simply excuses herself.

He nods and picks at the potatoes.

She swallows her last grape and starts to eye Peeta's remaining food.

"I can't…I'm still trying to process this, Katniss," he says.

"I know. I'm sorry this is too much for you. When I left, I wasn't really thinking of all I was leaving behind. Instead, I was looking way ahead of the situation."

She has abandoned her fork, struck by how selfish she just sounded. "I can't let the games take her away, Peeta. I'm not bringing a child out into this world to serve and to bleed as Capitol's piece of entertainment." Her face is set on stone.

Peeta keeps his mind focused on the baby and its future, because if he makes this issue about him and how much Katniss had inflicted hurt on him, he would remain infuriated with her.

"Perhaps we're an exception. If our child was born and raised here in the Capitol, she is deemed a Capitol citizen. She may never set foot in any arena," Peeta suggests.

"That's a risk. That's if the odds were not in our favor," she replies quietly.

Peeta is quick to scoot his chair closer to her and places a hand on her forearm.

Katniss gives him a sad smile. Suddenly her mood lifts up and she's gasping. "Oh! She's kicking!" She grabs Peeta's hand and places it gingerly atop her belly.

They both sit immobile in silence, feeling the baby wriggle underneath their hands. Peeta is ecstatic.

"Can we name her Lila?," he suggests. He leans in and props his ear against her stomach, his lips mouthing a quick 'hi'.

* * *

Katniss traces the ridges and the edges of the beveled BreadRun logo displayed across the store window. The last vision she remembers of this store was an empty room, freshly painted with spunky lime green and beige, adorned by bread and cupcake stencils in black. She helped in picking the colors and painting the walls, and also designed the small menu on the door. She was inspired to be creative when she was with Peeta, her artistically untrained hands softening with each stroke and curve, leaving trails of color, drawing fine lines, the same hands that would rather kill with a bow and arrow.

She peeks in through the glass window and notes that there aren't many customers inside before she pushes her way through the door. It's a little past lunch the next day, and so far she's pleased with her progress of making amends with Peeta.

One of the store attendants who once worked closely with Katniss during the development stages of the bakery, collide into an empty pie rack as soon as she spots her wandering around by the cash registers. A mixture of shock and joy emanate from her, and takes her hand to lead her to the backroom where a couple of giant brick ovens dominate all the other appliances.

"You're pregnant! What happened...where did you go?" Danali asks, almost hyperventilating.

Katniss laughs at her friend's animated expressions. "I went on a very long vacation."

"You know, the Mellarks didn't take your disappearance lightly at all," Danali is suddenly serious.

Mr. Mellark scuffles and emerges from behind, summoned by all the commotion the attendant is making. He is frozen speechless as Katniss extends to him a warm smile.


	6. Chapter 6: BreadRun Co

**Author's Notes: Hello! Today marks my one week point here in Fanfiction world yay. I'm aware my chapters are short so I made this one over 1,800 words (wow! lol), almost like the previous chapter but a lil bit bigger. Just wanted to say a little thanks to my followers for sticking around with me. It's enough for me to keep writing. And a review would be nice anytime soon. I will love you forever like Peeta love cake.  
Oh and I named Daddy Mellark "Wynn" because he has always looked like a Wynn to me**

* * *

He grabs her by the shoulders, pulls her in, and tries to hug her cautiously, avoiding her stomach as soon as Katniss announces that she and Peeta are expecting a baby girl.

"A granddaughter! I'm going to have a granddaughter!" Mr. Mellark says, elated, and suddenly feels the urgency to make her feel welcomed and comfortable.

He brings her to a table with chairs in the staff room, and insists Katniss to try a big slice of the chocolate chiffon cake he just finished decorating, while Danali disappears into the store front. He says Peeta had been on his tail particularly about this recipe, getting him to duplicate it perfectly because it's Peeta's favourite cake. He then pours her some cold milk and neatly places some napkins on the table.

Katniss' mouth waters at the sight of moist chocolate ripples and swirls in front of her, glistening in richness. She exclaims she has never tried that kind of cake, right before she takes one big bite, the icing smearing on her lips. She licks it off in delight as Mr. Mellark firmly reminds her of the napkins.

They linger on small talk, such as her train ride to the Capitol, how she and Peeta have been spending some time together, and the quirks and joy of pregnancy. She thought twice and hard whether or not she should tell him about the dangers of the tracker jacker venom that is threatening their baby, and concludes she trusts him enough to let him in. She subdues his alarm by telling him she has the physical cure that can only be found in the Capitol, and her mother herself will perform the procedure back in District Twelve.

Mr. Mellark avoids talking about his son in emotional terms. And finally he asks, "So what are you going to do now, Katniss? You can't be in two places at the same time."

"I…," she starts. She pinches the napkin between her fingers. "I can't stay here Wynn. I'm sorry. This place is just not for me," she trails off torn, putting a brave face on because she's aware of how self-centered she sounds. He just nods at her reply, and once he notices Katniss' mood fall, he pushes another slice of cake, looking comically sympathetic.

Somehow Mr. Mellark's concerned facial expression and the additional slab of cake he's presenting as if it's a peace offering, triggers a chuckle she's trying to restrain. Therefore her chuckle comes out as an obnoxious snort, and they both fall into fits of laughter.

"I will keep in touch, I promise. I will send holograms of the baby and...and we'll visit. I give you my word!" she bursts out, realizing how much she missed Peeta's dad. She has grown fond of him over the years, and without her realizing; looked up to him as a father figure. He has always been very thoughtful and caring to her and Prim, she wasn't ever really sure why. She has become subconsciously drawn to his kindness.

"Will you be sending Peeta some pictures too?" Mr. Mellark asks. Her face softens but before she could answer, Mr. Mellark's attention flies towards the back of Katniss' head and at the door where Mrs. Mellark is barging through. Danali is behind her, pleading to calm down.

"You have the nerves to step foot in this place, you little brat!" she fires. Katniss is taken aback, clutching the edge of the table, and looks afraid that she might get blown over.

Mr. Mellark stands up and comes between her and his wife, and tries to pull her away into the conjoining room.

"Did you expect us to believe that that baby is Peeta's? When you pulled your disappearing act, you have no respect for anybody who cared about you here," she's almost spitting in rage. "We all know who else is in District 12, that wreck of a place!"

"Fina, stop it!" Mr. Mellark barks.

"I'm…I'm sorry…I didn't mean to…" Katniss curls and shuts off inwardly. It hits her how low Mrs. Mellark perceives her as a person, to be thinking that she's the type to be sleeping right away with Gale as soon as she steps back in District 12.

She feels her knees get weak and tremble, and she clasps her mouth in an attempt to prevent herself from sobbing.

"There is no support or sympathy for you here. Count Peeta out. You don't deserve anything from him," she says.

Mr. Mellark stopped trying to restrain his wife and is back on Katniss' side. All she's seeing through the teary gloss over her eyes is Mr. Mellark's comforting hand on her forearm and the wood pattern on the table, noting how complex it. She also sees her feet moving, moving away, she figured, from the witch who is still standing by the door, yelling and pointing at her, while Mr. Mellark guides her along.

She looks up at him, smiling.

"Thanks for the yummy cake, Wynn," she says, skirting around a huge recycling bin, now many steps away from the door.

She distinguishes Peeta's confused and alarmed voice coming from the opened back door of the bakery, finally running into his mom who is still rabid with frustration. But Katniss doesn't look back.

"You know where to find it," Mr. Mellark says. "Do take care of yourself and the baby."

She trudges through the back alley of the bakery, dodging trash bins, feeling stupid for showing up. There's a set of foot running behind her, accompanied by light panting.

"Katniss! What she said…whatever that was...that was not true…" he says when he catches up with her. "She's had a…a terrible week with the staff, and her temper has been through the roof," he's fumbling over his words, trying to defend his mother.

Katniss had watched her hit him before, when they were younger. She remembers how his head flung backwards as her hand made impact with his cheek. But Peeta never budged, nor reacted, sporting a black eye for the rest of the week, making excuses about it in school.

Katniss just shrugs and waves her hand in dismissal, and continues walking forward and out, her expression unreadable.

"Hey," Peeta grabs her by the arm and careful to turn her slowly around. "Are you okay? Come here."

She still does not look at him. "I'm fine Peeta. I just about got mopped on the floor by your mom. That and I had cake, it was delicious," she sounds irritated.

He lets go of her arm and takes a step backwards. "Are you angry at me? What did I do!" he asks in mild disbelief.

She lets out an exasperated sigh and slightly shakes her head.

"I have no reason to be angry at you, Peeta, I am…" her hand swings up to clutch her forehead. "I am angry at the situation."

"Don't be. Might not be good for the baby, you know," his tone smooths out, and reaches out a hand to touch her belly.

"She said so many awful things about me. I've never felt so humiliated."

"Katniss, there are way more important things than taking my mother's senseless tirades seriously."

They reach the end of the alley and resurfaced into the main street, blending into the crowd, all too familiar with the mixed chaos of people and traffic. Peeta leans his left arm against a lamp post, putting all his weight onto it and Katniss keeps her back towards the road.

"I came in to the store hoping to get a baking lesson. I wanted to learn how to make strudels, or apple turnovers. Until your dad made me try this cake," she says glowing.

Peeta smiles and squints into the sun above them.

"You liked it? Making chocolate cream icing wasn't really one of his forte, but it looks like he finally got it right this time," he says with an air of superiority.

"It tasted like a dream!" Katniss declares.

"Tell you what, come over to the house tomorrow and I'll teach you how to make it," Peeta's eyes widen at his own offer. She looks excited and accepts the invitation.

They linger for a little bit, letting silence fill in the space between them, and she starts to gather herself before hailing a taxi cab to take her back to the hotel.

* * *

It is around 11 am the next day when she arrives in the house she and Peeta lived in together for roughly two years before she left. She steps through the door rather painfully timid, hesitant at first, taking in the old familiar smell of vanilla and new wood. It sends goose bumps rolling down her arms.

Peeta excuses himself and resumes importing grocery bags from his car all the way to the kitchen, shooing away eager housemaids, leaving Katniss fidgeting in the middle of the living room as if she was a guest. She calls out after him as he shuffles and bangs his way through the kitchen, telling him she will look for her cooking apron.

Katniss takes this moment to wander off up the stairs, curious to see how the rest of the house looks like now. She notes how he's able to maintain every room dust-free and organized, and assumes, with a chuckle, that he pays housemaids to have it done. Everything is still intact, framed pictures of the both of them still hanging on walls. She spots a new addition by his study; a laminated front page of Esquire Magazine that features him as Top Entrepreneur of the Year.

Finally she reaches their bedroom, almost tiptoeing, careful not to make a sound. She thinks of how much this feels like being re-acquainted with an old friend, awkward but hauntingly familiar. She pulls open a sliding door and recognizes the folded aprons right away.

She walks around their old bed, blushing at velvety memories. Of heart-skipping nights when she writhed under him, of when he was able to evoke primal sounds from the back of her throat she didn't know she was capable of making.

She is ready to leave the bedroom when she sees a piece of paper sticking halfway out of the drawer of the end table. She pauses, and is somehow bothered by how disorderly it looks. She begins to press the drawer close but the recognition of her own handwriting freezes her attention and possibly her heart.

Pulling off the paper all the way, she is disconcerted by her own goodbye note to Peeta, reminding her all over again of how she lacked in courtesy. And what she finds laying underneath the piece of paper almost makes her dizzy.


	7. Chapter 7: Sweet Genius

The red suede jewelry box is soft and rich in texture, bordered by thin, magnificent yellow gold rim. She slowly opens it to reveal a majestic, vintage-style silver ring, with a 18K white gold diamond nestled in the middle of a round bed of smaller diamonds. All the air in her lungs seems to have waned because she intakes a sharp breath, and twitches at the slightest sound coming from the hallway.

Peeta is standing by the door, like a deer caught in the headlights.

Katniss' lips look like they're struggling to form something to say, but her voice is trapped behind her tongue. She nervously places the jewelry box down on the table as if it had spikes.

"Come on down, the cake is not going to make itself," he begins.

She follows him dumbly down the staircase, her mind doing loops. As they make it on the ground floor she makes him stop from walking and yanks his arm back to face her.

"Peeta…"

She is taken aback by emptiness she saw in his icy blue eyes as they bear into hers.

"You weren't supposed to see that," he says glumly.

"You were…planning to…" she trails again. She inwardly curses her inability to create full sentences at the moment.

"I meant to propose to you the day you left. But it made me see we weren't on the same page, so it's okay that it didn't happen."

This side-blinds and surprisingly hurts her in such a high caliber that she wants to leave. She makes a noise that is a cross between a scoff and a sob, and turns on her heels.

Now it's his turn to reach out and yank her arm back as it flails away.

"No it's not okay. Nothing is okay, Peeta."

"Katniss, don't…" he reaches out and tilts her chin towards him so they see eye-to-eye.

In the midst of over-charged tension hanging in the air, their heads suddenly jerk aside, noses upturned, sniffing aloud. It smells like something is burning. Peeta's eyes slowly descend on Katniss' at a realization, wide with alarm.

"My cake!" he flips over and barrels towards the kitchen with Katniss following behind him at surprisingly good speed for a pregnant woman. The smell of burnt bread is so strong she wonders if the whole oven is on fire.

They work quickly on the second batch of batter, the scorched square cake now sitting lonely on one end of the counter. Katniss wrinkles her nose at it with a slight look of regret. She re-focuses her observation on Peeta, whose focus is purely on wildly tearing drawer and cupboard doors open, grabbing ingredients and lining them up on the counter. Katniss chuckles quietly as he whips out the chocolate tablets, look of pure will and determination on his face.

"And now we're on to the icing," he says in a serious tone. "Stand back, this may get messy." This wins a louder chuckle from Katniss.

They chat through the mixing of milk and flour in a saucepan, the sugar and vanilla, and finally beating all of the ingredients together. Their conversations skirt away from sensitive matters such as the ring and the failed proposal, which brings floods of relief to Katniss. She already feels awful for running off in the first place, and now that she learns he had a ring and a question to go with it all along, she feels beyond rotten, and she hates it.

She is propped up on her arms along the island counter, watching Peeta mix the chocolate languidly, the bowl cradled carefully in his arm. He talks about the ratios and measurement of ingredients, and techniques in timing, but she finds it hard to focus on what he's saying because she is trying to stop the drool from forming gracelessly in her mouth.

He breaks her reverie and asks her to take the cake out of the oven for it to cool. She does what he asks without objection, gliding across the kitchen tile, as though brainwashed by his words. She places the pan down and resumes her watching position by the counter.

He finally sets the whisk down and dips his finger into the bowl full of silky, smooth chocolate, brings it up to his lips, and lazily devours it. His face sets in an intuitive manner, tongue testing and playing with the chocolate in his mouth, and smiles in appreciation.

Before she realizes, Katniss is lunging forward with her hand poised to dip into the bowl of chocolate Peeta is still holding. As a defense, he swings around and makes her face his back, snickering as he eats more chocolate icing luxuriously.

She whines his name and stomps like a child, her hands clawing at his shoulder, demanding him to turn around.

"Didn't your mother teach you to share chocolate with others?" she asks, and then it all happens too quickly, as soon as Peeta has completely swiveled back around to face her, she blinks in a half shock as his chocolate covered finger takes a big, thick swipe at her nose. His head pulls back in laughter at his masterpiece.

Katniss huffs in exaggeration, annoyance slowly creeping up on her as she is finally able to dunk into the bowl and grab a handful of the icing, and takes her time smothering all of it on half of Peeta's face in retaliation.

He stands motionless, wearing the same shocked expression Katniss did when he first attacked her. They size each other up, waiting on the other's next move.

Without thinking twice, Peeta dips his finger into the bowl again and attempts to take another wild stroke, aiming higher at Katniss' forehead. But Katniss surprises him by being one step ahead, shielding her face from his offending hand using the back of her forearm and seizes it with her other hand.

"Your nose looks yummy," he says, trying to sound nonchalant, eyeing her through their tangled arms. He flashes a swaggering grin, showing all his teeth, and begins to grind them together. She's still holding his hand up in mid-air, the chocolate slowly sliding down the tip of his finger.

"Not if I eat your cheek first," she answers, and with this she pulls their inter-laced hands down altogether and shifts forward, closing the distance between them. She aims and takes a bite of chocolate off his face with her lips, teeth slightly grazing his skin.

"Mmmm!" she purrs as she pulls back, relishing the chocolate with her eyes closed. After she licks her lips clean, she goes in for a second bite but she is greeted by Peeta's index finger held up in front of him, topped with a huge glob of icing.

There is a glint in Katniss' eye as she continues her aggression, staring dead into his eyes. She moves to envelope his finger in her mouth, leisurely licking the chocolate off. Peeta gasps at the contact and as she pulls away from him, he dives down and catches her mouth with his, hungry in anticipation, kissing her with fierceness that intimidated her. Her hands fly up, one grabbing at his hair, the other clasping his jaw, the chocolate bowl now hanging over the edge of the island counter as he traps her against it, careful not to press into her stomach.

* * *

The rest of the afternoon they spend on the balcony, eating cookies and the chiffon cake in which Peeta finally allowed her, after a prolonged argument, to draw a happy face on using vanilla icing. They gossip about Haymitch and Effie, Peeta betting that they are now in a relationship, and Katniss giving him updates on the neighborhood he left behind in District 12. Peeta's phone has been ringing incessantly and he has managed to ignore the calls, except the one call from his business coach.

A cool wind has picked up and it rattles the trees below them, the rustle of the foliage sounding like music to her ears. The harsh sun makes it hard for her to look directly at Peeta, so she duplicates his facial expression and squints back at him.

"You know I've always wondered if you just woke up one day and realized you had no feelings for me anymore," he says. He doesn't sound sad, or angry. And Katniss couldn't quite put a finger on it.

She pauses for a long time, like she doesn't know how to respond.

"No, Peeta…," she curses at her inability to transfer thoughts or emotions into words. "I know what I feel for you, and it's constant, but my mind is constantly aggressive." Her shoulders slump as she plays with the cookie crumbs on her plate.

"So where is your mind going to now, if you don't mind me asking?" His voice is gentle and low, and it hits her how much she missed the steadiness that comes hand in hand with being around his presence.

But her mind screams. She wants to tell him how much she wants him to come back home with her to the district. That she needs him, as a lover, and as a father to their daughter. That she wants a simple life, free from shackles and pains of fame, and more importantly, from the claws of the gamemakers, and as far away from President Snow as possible.

But she watches housemaids milling around doing chores, begging Peeta to give them duties, the walk-in closet full of his designer suits, the expensive furniture, the different gadgets lined up on the table and tucked in his pockets, gifts and tokens of appreciation from fans and media big wigs.

Everything he owns is reflective of his honest, hard work, and he deserves it. She bites her lip.

She carefully selects and stitches her words together. "Home. I can't bear to be near Snow. This place is a continuous bad reminder of the games for me."

If there is any inch of hurt that flashes across Peeta's face, she doesn't notice it. He sits impassively, and she finds it unsettling.

"I understand. I respect that," he says, and smiles.

Katniss' decision not to be selfish when it comes to Peeta, not to steal him away from the comfort and contentment of an achieved high status, breaks her inside, and she crumbles. She meets his gaze, and pleads for her hormones to behave and not to turn against her.

Dusk covers the city and he takes her to the park, where they spend a few hours bound together on a bench, whispering confessions and sweet nothings. Peeta makes her promise to attend the gala the next day, enticing her with the guest list including Haymitch, Effie, her former style group and Cinna, and swears that President Snow will not be present due to a recent submission to the hospital for a major heart surgery, the Capitol's latest breaking news. His last announcement before the admission was that the festivity must go on.

Peeta drives her back to the hotel and bids her a good night sleep.


	8. Chapter 8: Flashing Lights

The next day, and also the last day of her extended stay in the Capitol, she spends mostly in the hotel perusing through her thoughts, wondering whether or not she should attend the party. She does not care if she doesn't have any proper dress, or if she looks too big. She simply does not have the zest to have to answer people's questions about her disappearance, or her return, for that matter.

Peeta has only called once in the morning to greet her to have a good day before he headed to work. She thought she was enjoying all the silence around her until she realizes she is pacing too much around the hotel room, and finally picks up the phone to give Cinna a call.

Her black maternity dress rests on the bed. It is sleeve-less, layered with soft laces, length flowing down until an inch above her knees. It was a gift from Gale.

Her breath catches in sadness as she remembers Gale. It was raining in drizzles when he spotted her walking from the train station many months ago when she returned to the district. He was almost hopping as he ran towards her, arms wide open, and Katniss returned the gesture. But he knew then and there that something was wrong, and she asked for a little bit of space and time.

He took her back to the woods and spent plenty of hours hunting. He noticed she was a little bit on the rusty side on handling the arrow, her accuracy, and was patient to guide her so she could regain her ability. But weeks later, she started declining the invites to their hunting grounds, and one night when Gale made a discreet attempt to kiss her under a maple tree, she finally opened up about her pregnancy.

"It's Peeta's," she said, touching the part of her where the baby was growing, although she didn't need to clarify to Gale what he already felt coming. "I didn't even say goodbye."

He couldn't help it, but a part of him felt selfishly good at this bit of news. He was happy to have her back, and was confident that this time, she will stay for good. If she was able to pull off a stunt like disappearing off the face of the Capitol and not caring about any consequences, especially given the circumstance that she is pregnant, something ensured him that she is not going anywhere anymore.

But the fact that the baby is Peeta's bothered him, a lot more than he allowed himself. And much to his chagrin, he felt overly jealous.

"I'm here for you Katniss. I can be whatever you want," he told her defiantly.

She was not exactly sure what he meant, but she nodded and expressed her gratitude.

Her thoughts drift back to the simple black dress in front of her as the silence in the hotel room hums harder. The clock hits 6 pm, an hour before the guests are allowed in to the President's Mansion. She turns on the huge television plastered on the wall to fill the room with noise and snatches the dress before she heads to the bathroom to get ready.

* * *

Meanwhile across Panem, Gale stands before a fuzzy television in a cafeteria near the Hob with his game sack. He drops it on the ground guardedly, and approaches the screen closer. Many people have joined him, congregating around the show. A mandatory, country-wide feed is on featuring the Annual Victors' Gala. Many different TV personalities take turn reporting from various parts of the lavish, deluxe manor. One of them was Wildon Wilikin paired up with a high profiled comedian with silver hair, silver tinted skin and a plunging neck line.

"Good evening Panem. I can confidently say, this is the first time in years that I'm sure that nobody is looking at me," Wildon starts, then gesturing to his co-host who is roaring with amusement along with the audience.

"Oh stop it, Wildon," Ava says.

"Really, you're the life-size version of an award statuette. Although a tad heavier." This draws a light slap on the arm from Ava. "And much more fierce must I add!" he finished. The only laughter is streaming from the television set, boisterous and carefree. Gale takes a quick glance around the cafeteria and notices that no one has made a sound or reacted in the slightest. But everybody is watching with uninterested eyes.

"Wildon, fill us in on who's rolling on the golden carpet!" Ava asks, now reading off a teleprompter.

"Tonight is going to be a blast. Serre will be here performing her latest single!" he answers enthusiastically while Ava applauds in approval. Wildon continues his mental list.

"Both District 3 victors Beetee and Wiress will grace us with their immeasurable intelligence. And of course, what is a Capitol party without its poster boy, Finnick Odair!"

"FInnick Odair!" Ava repeats. There is a collective sigh amongst women in the crowd. He proceeds with more names which elicit different responses and applauds from the eager crowd.

Ava has a sort of soured, disappointed face towards Wildon. "I think you may be forgetting to mention someone." He shoots up a pointed finger as a gesture to hush.

"Saving the best for last, and he should be walking in any minute now, Capitol's darling, our favorite bread boy, Peeta Mellark!"

This sends the audience in delirium. Ava tries to cut the noise down by adding something more.

"Oh I love him! And speaking of Peeta, there is word floating around of a re-kindled flame of a past love," her eyebrows are excited and suggestive. "A spark re-ignited, re-visited…oh I could go on…"

"The ever romantic Ava, you are just a ball of love, aren't you."

"Yes people, we might be seeing the elusive Katniss Everdeen! And a big hint to spice up the comeback; there is a bun in the oven!" She is swooning and squeaky, and for a second it looks like she cannot contain herself.

At this point Gale bitterly tears away from the television and starts to gather the game sack he placed on the floor. He turns around and is caught off guard by the sympathetic looks people are throwing at him.

He ignores the whispers and heads straight through the door.

* * *

Katniss takes in a heavy breath and almost ruins her party invitation as she grips it in her hands while waiting to be ushered inside the mansion. She was running late in preparation at the hotel and refused to make Peeta wait, instead telling him to go ahead without her.

The President's Mansion is no stranger to her; she had seen it before the Hunger Games and plenty of times afterwards during the tours. But tonight, as soon as she steps a foot through the arched doors, her breath leaves her at the grandeur of the hall.

The night's theme is gold. Everything from tabletops to the floor is splashed in gold and highlighted in sparkling silver. There is a majestic, complex chandelier hanging above the dance floor, as equally majestic in size.

The guests' skin complexions are as colorful as their flamboyant wardrobe and accessories in their hair. Tables line up side by side boasting delicious arrays of food, from meats and seafood to vegetable dishes, to luscious desserts and impressive selection of alcohol and hot beverages. In minutes, since the doors have opened, the mansion fills up quickly, drowned out by happy laughter and endless chatter.

Katniss is barely noticeable in her black dress, but some old familiar faces flock to her without effort. She smiles and acts casual as if she was never gone. She ducks out of a big circle of people and aims to find an empty table, shielding a plate of crackers topped with caviar with her hands.

As soon as her bottom hits the chair, she feels someone poking her shoulder from behind. She whips around agitatedly and finds Cinna looking down at her with a bit of concern on his face. He is offering her a stem of beautiful blue gerbera.

"If you had a bow and arrow in your hand I would think you're aiming at the middle of my forehead," he says.

"Cinna!" she jumps out of her chair and gives him an embrace. "You found me! I am growing all sorts of claustrophobic and I can't take this anymore," she gestures at all the activities and socializing in front of her.

"Katniss, the party is barely starting. Anyway, all the big names are here tonight. I just heard it's the biggest turnout yet in ten years."

"Well, I can't say I'm here for that. I'm here strictly for my friends," she smiles down into her flower.

"Are you and Peeta alright?" he asked without breaks or hesitation. Katniss looks up at him still holding her smile.

"We're good! We've been hanging out a lot. I wanted to be his date but I don't want to give people something to talk about."

"Katniss, it's a little bit too late for that. People may be ego maniacs and self-absorbed here, but they can piece two and two together," he's trying to suppress a chuckle, shaking his head at her naivety.

"Oh, whatever!" she says carelessly and throws a cracker into her mouth. "This is good cracker." She pushes the plate towards Cinna.

A camera crew finds them on the table and eases them into an interview. The reporter has a couple of pregnancy questions for Katniss and fashion enquiries for Cinna. As soon as Cinna establishes a strong and interesting topic for the camera, such as his new line of jeans and leather jackets, Katniss sneaks out of the spotlight determined to find any type of liquid to quench her thirst.

A pot of lobster distracts her from the beverage section.

She squeezes into the swarm of hungry people huddled over the seafood section, being granted space once her face, and demanding stomach, are recognized. The reactions she gets are widely the same; coos and squeals mostly from women.

She emerges successful, drooling at her plate of lobsters and scalloped potatoes. She fails at finding Cinna, let alone the table they were sitting in, but she is quickly snatched aside by an animated Effie Trinkett, kissing her cheek, with Haymitch hovering closely behind.

Katniss huffs in annoyance, almost dropping her plate.

"Katniss, darling, stop eating and socialize," Effie blurts out; grabbing her pile of lobster tails away and places it down on a table behind her.

"I was going to eat that."

"Where is the boy? I thought this was a double date," Haymitch asks gruffly.

Katniss shrugs and glances at the scope of the room. It is tinged with heavy activity of chatter and dizzying bodily movement. She realizes the room is too busy for her and she begins to feel claustrophobic once more.

"I better go find him in the dessert section," Katniss says. "I'll be back, don't move."

* * *

**A/N: Party time! Hear that ppl? Katniss says don't move. Hehehe. **


	9. Chapter 9: Last Dance

**Author's notes: I know my story is dark and heavy with drama, lacking major fluff, therefore it's not everybody's favourite, so I try to insert some comic relief here and there, and sorry if it's not generous enough. I would love to hear what you think of the story so far, any comments or questions.. Pretty please with Peeta's cheesebuns on top.**

* * *

As she weaves her way through the floor she is greeted by faces after faces, but she doesn't trust that these people are genuinely happy to see her. Instead, she is growing more interested in the wild variety of foods on the serving tables, some of them she has never seen or tasted before.

Passing by the bar, she finds herself speaking louder to be excused, to nobody in particular, because she cannot pass through. She notices a group of men in black, gray, and gold suits, and a couple of women who are laughing raucously, huddled together in a corner. As they turn around to catch a glimpse of Katniss, they give her space as she struggles to squeeze through. As the crowd parts with her every step, time drags and the place is suddenly moving slowly in her eyes. She is granted the sight of Peeta leaning by the bar, one hand holding a wine glass and the other in his pocket, looking gorgeous.

Everything on him was black, except his gold bowtie and and classy cufflinks. He smiles in delight when he sees her appear from the depths of the crowd, looking a bit lost, maybe hurt, and holding her stomach. He steps into the middle of the circle to invade her personal space.

"How long have you been here?" he asks, glancing at his cell phone swiftly to check if he received any missed calls from her.

"Approximately an hour. Effie felt she had to fish me out of the crowd," Katniss pauses to observe the wine glass. "How long have you been drinking?"

"Not long enough that I don't know where I'm going. You seem somewhat distracted."

"I'm fine Peeta. I'm just not good in parties like you."

At this point he ushers her out of the circle of guests, placing his hand at her lower waist as they walk. He leans in to pepper her with kisses and her face sours playfully in pretense of disliking it. He smells of strong liquor and strawberries.

Before she realizes it, she is leaning into him and returning the kisses in the middle of the dance floor. Lights dim lower and she sighs into his shoulder as he snakes an arm up to tighten around her protectively, the air tinted with the melodramatic music of Serre.

Reminders pop on and off in Katniss' head, pushing her to ask Peeta the questions which may make or break the relationship furthermore. She isn't sure if it's the romantic music, or the shower of soft yellow lights hanging from the chandelier, but her insides are warm, fuzzy, and dangerously vulnerable. She wants to ask him to go back to the district with her. She could almost hear Haymitch pestering her, breathing down her neck. "Do it already!"

Instead, she giggles, and the mere act surprises even herself.

"I missed you," she says above whisper. Glancing over Peeta's shoulder in a good distance she spots a photographer squatting on the floor, camera pointed straight at them. One of her hands fly up to partially cover her face, and then chooses to nuzzle her head in between the crook of Peeta's neck.

"I,…I missed you too Katniss," Peeta answers.

The slow dance is over and Serre leaves the stage to take a break.

Katniss starts to pull him off the dance floor and suggests to Peeta that they search and join Effie and Haymitch whom she neglected from earlier.

As the night progressed they are joined by different victors visiting their table, each offering shots with Haymitch, much to Effie's horror. Finnick Odair comes barreling through a wall of colorful guests and plops onto a seat next to Effie. He ignores everybody else on the table, also Peeta's possessive, outstretched arm behind Katniss' back. Finnick's whole attention is on Katniss across the round table, who was busily shoving succulent filet mignon in red wine reduction into her mouth.

"Hi, you're back, forever?" Finnick greets her.

Katniss has a straight face when she answers, "Hello Finnick," in between chews.

"There's something different about you. I can't quite nail it. You're almost glowing. I like it," he says.

Peeta and Haymitch shoot each other a quizzical look across the table. Perhaps the whole Capitol knows about Katniss' pregnancy except Finnick.

"I'm currently on a good diet," Katniss says.

"Diet! There's a word that does not exist in Twelve!," Finnick guffaws at his own joke while the rest of the table is deadpan. "Keep it up Katniss, you look beautiful," he winks at her, then nods knowingly at Peeta.

"Doesn't she?," asks Peeta, glancing proudly at Katniss whom he squeezes into his shoulder. "Squirrels are excellent for skin. That's where she gets the olive glow." Katniss is passive, and has now moved on to her watermelon gazpacho soup.

Effie snickers behind her pink handkerchief and then scowls at Peeta.

"Hey Finnick. Where's your horde of fan base, and why are you not basking in it," Haymitch asks, passing him a shot glass.

"I'm telling you, being good looking is hard work, 24/7. I am just lucky I'm getting a break right now, hiding in here with you guys."

"You should get a body double, darling, to distract girls away from you. Nowadays they can be easily hired and trained to act exactly like you," Effie suggests, sipping champagne.

"But where are they going to find someone who looks exactly like me?," He flashes everyone on the table a smile. "I'm one of a kind," he finishes another shot of whiskey with Haymitch, followed by more hints of protest from Effie, and dives back into the crowd that seemed to engulf him as soon as he was recognized.

A couple of songs later Effie stands up and drags Haymitch to the dance floor, waving and kissing her friends. She is as energetic and as lovestruck as a teenager, dancing on four-inch heels and possibly on alcohol. Haymitch sneaks a kiss on the neck, and Effie whips her head back, laughing.

Peeta and Katniss remain seated on the table, too absorbed watching all the drunken yet happy dance sequences happening on the floor. Peeta acknowledges his alcohol tolerance limit and refuses the incoming drinks, a pile of empty shot glasses have gathered on his side. He pulls Katniss closer to him as the light dims again for the next music performance.

"How do you like the party?" he asks, pushing his nose forward in to hers that their tips are almost touching.

"Too grandiose, but it's not that bad I guess," her eyes twinkle in the faint yellow light, and at the unapologetic closeness that is Peeta, wrapping her around him.

"Want to get out of here? We can hang out by the lake shore. There's a new breed of migrant fish there, and there's only five of them so far. All you do is stick both your feet in the water and they will approach you and clean them!" Peeta recommends. "And they glow in orange!"

"That's an interesting way to end the night," Katniss smiles as an agreement, "Not sure if my feet are dirty enough though!"

"They will tickle, by the way. Hope you're not squeamish."

"Peeta, I used to eat tree lizards for dinner."

She excuses herself to the bathroom after they bid the party goodnight, and he tells her to meet at the exit to the back of the mansion where his hover car is parked.

Katniss is elated at seeing Peeta elated. She gauges his mood, concluding that the night is perfect to ask him to come away with him, get him back home, and is hoping against all odds that he agrees despite the emotional and mental disquietude she has put him through.

She sees more familiar faces by the vanity area in the bathroom, which is as frivolous as the main hall. She receives invites after invites to after-parties by the Capitol elites, politely refusing them all. The rest of her style group which she did not see during the party catch her right outside the bathroom door, and distracts her into another conversation that lasted longer than she would have allowed.

She finally pulls away from her overjoyed style group and checks the massive wall clock on the north side of the mansion wall. It's half hour past eleven. She reaches the exit door and peeks out, noting the still fully occupied parking lot and no presence of Peeta waiting for her. It appears everyone is still enjoying the gala. She ducks back into the mansion and walks by the bar only to spot Finnick busily attending to his girlfriends.

She wanders around in loops and curses inwardly that she should have stayed outside in the parking lot to wait for him. Now her energy is totally spent and she almost jumps out of her skin as Cinna approaches her from a shadow, looking worried and confused.

"Katniss, there you are," he grabs her hand, "You need to go to the west wing of the lobby."

"Wait, Cinna, what's going on?" she is almost yanking her hand back out. "I am tired and ready to pass out! Have you seen Peeta?"

"He is exactly our concern here."

Katniss can't help but feel alarmed as they barge through people who are now too inebriated to acknowledge Katniss anymore. They swerve around a corner and Katniss watches on as a bleached blonde girl in a dress that should be deemed inappropriate for such a prestigious event, curl herself around Peeta. Suddenly Cinna doesn't exist by her side anymore.

Tinsel Kay looks fierce and intimidating in her short, tight white dress embedded with golden studs, hair tousled and wild, lips as red as cherry. She spots Katniss gawking at them from her side vision, and as if on cue, wraps her arms around Peeta's neck. She side glances one more time at Katniss with a sheepish grin on her face before she pulls Peeta's head down for a kiss.

Their lips almost come into contact when Katniss calls out his name, in a tone she does not recognize herself. Peeta jerks back and de-tangles Tinsel from his body, as if revolted by the sight of her. Katniss scoffs at them, heart beating triple the rate, furious and ready to pounce, maybe on Tinsel, perhaps on Peeta, but instead, sharply turns around on her heels.

"Neutralize the fire. Neutralize the fire," Katniss reminds herself in a chant. She knows she is capable of blowing up in fury, and getting caught up in it, so she is trying to maintain a tranquil, levelled head for the sake of her baby.

"Katniss wait!" Peeta takes two steps forward in hopes of grabbing her hand. He doesn't get that far.

"Look what the cat dragged back in. The infamous Katniss Everdeen, knocked up version," Tinsel starts. Katniss stops on her tracks and turns back to face both of them, fists still curled up in anger. Peeta looks like a nervous wreck and finds himself trapped in the middle of the two women, suddenly struck with the urgency to take flight.


	10. Chapter 10: Trial and Error

"For the life of me I can't care less who you are neither am I interested in wasting my spit on you," Katniss answers.

"You should be interested. I'm Tinsel Kay," she says as-a-matter-of-fact. "And I do forgive your ignorance, since television is a rare luxury where you're from."

"I don't watch trash," Katniss' eye twitches with attitude.

"I 'm not sure what you're here for. You should've stayed where you chose to be in the first place," Tinsel says as a matter of fact. "Peeta just doesn't want anything to do with you anymore."

"I'm here for my baby. It gives me a sense of purpose. On the other hand, your life is pretentious. You're as fake as the five pound makeup on your face," Katniss hisses and turns around, marching away from the lobby. Peeta begins to follow Katniss as Tinsel calls his name. He gives her one last request.

"Tinsel. Do me a favour, and leave me alone. I'm sorry."

He is back on Katniss' heels, shooting Tinsel a dirty look over his shoulder as they walk away.

They remain silent through the hallway towards the exit, into the spacious parking lot, dodging glances from guests. Katniss begins to carelessly lunge forward due to fatigue, trying to get ahold of anything that would keep her upright. Peeta sweeps in and supports her arm.

"Don't touch me Peeta," Katniss threatens him. "Ugh. I shouldn't have come here in the first place, how could I have been so stupid!" She leans over the trunk of a random hover car and does a quick breathing exercise. She then intakes a big gulp of air and resumes standing position.

She goes on to pass many parked hover cars across the parking lot, letting her feet just drag her around.

"She is nothing to me Katniss. Please believe me," Peeta pleads, many steps behind her.

"So she's just a friend? You just hang out over coffee? Take her to the mall?" she is wincing at what she realizes she's saying, and makes a mental note to kick herself later, "Look at her, she's a walking Barbie doll!"

"I don't feel anything for her," he finds himself suddenly sober and fully awake. "Not like when it's with you Katniss. You're the one I've always wanted. And I've wanted to be with you for the longest time. And if I didn't show you enough that I loved you when I had you, not enough that it pushed you to leave me, then I'll take that upon myself."

Katniss stops walking aimlessly and turns around to face him, and waits until Peeta is standing mere inches from her.

"I've already lost you once. It will be tough, and it will take a lot out of me, but maybe I could do it again," he continues.

"No Peeta…that's the thing," she pauses under a lamp post, hand shaking over her belly at a comprehension. "I know you loved me. You...made me feel needed," she is trying her best to look stoic but her eyes are beginning to water. "And I'm not ready to forget how happy that has made me."

He steps in even closer, dominating over her space. She marvels at the way the glow from the lamp post highlights the features of his face and the richness of his black hair, the cool of his eyes, the vigor of his jaws, the inward curve of his cheeks. He's so handsome, she thinks.

He searches deep into her eyes, "You have no idea how much you've hurt me, but I still love you Katniss."

Katniss looks like she's about to cry as Peeta closes the distance between them and covers her in an embrace. The exit door has flung open and some guests have spilled out, half-civilized and gibberish, pouring into their vehicles. It seems the door has remained ajar because the music is louder, spreading out through parking lot area.

Peeta recognizes the song an artist is singing live, and lets go of Katniss, twirling her slowly around completely until her back is facing him. He snakes his arms through her sides until one of his hands is on the side of her belly, and the other one on her hip. He places his chin down on her shoulder and starts to sway her gently from side to side.

"Mmm, I like this song," he murmurs from behind her, sounding like slow honey to her ears. She recognizes the song "Fields of Gold" and chuckles, leaning the back of her head down on the nook of Peeta's neck. She closes her eyes.

They move slow, dancing into the end of the night, studying the stars above them, and in between whispers and fusses, she tells him "I love you too".

* * *

The song finishes and they pull apart from each other. Peeta suddenly perks up at a self-reminder, telling Katniss to follow him to his parked hover car. He slides the trunk open and picks up a rectangular box with Katniss' name scribbled on the front in bold pen.

"My dad wants you to have this," he says, handing Katniss the gift.

She recognizes the brand of a fashionable baby product manufacturer exclusively for celebrities in the Capitol and eagerly opens the flaps. Inside is a soft, folded yellow baby blanket with a small duck embroidery sewn in one of the corners. She grazes the fabric with her finger tips and sighs contently at the softness of the cotton, the very finest in Capitol.

"He told me he spent a couple of hours figuring out what to buy. He said he has never seen so many women flock around him in his life," Peeta says. "Then I had to remind him they're only sales ladies."

"Your dad is really sweet, tell him thanks," Katniss says with a big foolish grin.

"Sometimes I think he's excited about the baby more than the two of us put together."

They stall in silence, smirking at the ground beneath them, Katniss clutching the box close to her chest.

Cinna rolls through behind them in his metallic gray hover car and pokes his head out the window to greet both of them.

"I thought the dance floor inside was already big enough to accommodate everybody. I guess the parking lot will do too," he says, letting go of the steering wheel.

"Isn't it too early for you to bid the party adieu?" Katniss asks, taking little steps toward the hover car.

"It is, but it ain't about me, girl on fire. It's way past your curfew, and I'm driving you back to your hotel," Cinna says, and it looks like he isn't taking no for an answer.

Peeta smiles and takes Katniss' hand, brings it up to his lips and kisses it. He nods towards Cinna and backs away a little.

"Handle with care," Peeta says.

"Always have," Cinna answers. Before Katniss gets inside the hover car, she asks for a little bit more time with Peeta. Cinna agrees and moves the car a bit out of ear range.

Katniss is silent for a while, staring at Peeta's sleeve stained with a streak of alcohol. She takes in a deep breath, and for a second, looked like she was about to retrieve.

"Thank you for keeping me company when I looked for the serum. I'm so relieved that Dr. Parenti gave it to us."

"Of course. More importantly I hope the procedure will pull through," he says. "You're still in danger, Katniss. We could lose our baby."

Katniss is shaking her head slightly and finds it agonizing to concentrate in one basket of thought.

"Peeta, I'm leaving for Twelve tomorrow morning. I will be taking the nine a.m. train. I know what I did to you was despicable, and I acknowledged it, and I have apologized from the bottom of my heart."

She is not usually good at confrontations especially when her emotions are involved, so she's internally bracing herself from any kind of reaction she may get from Peeta.

She continues, "If you could find it within yourself to completely forgive me, and try again for a fresh start, I will be waiting at the train station."

Peeta's expression is unreadable in the dark, hands shoved into his pockets. He doesn't respond but his eyes have detached from Katniss', his focal interest now landing at the lamp post behind her. She wants to reach out and ruffle his hair, but she restrains herself and swiftly turns around, heading towards Cinna's hover car.

The noise of a sliding hover car door echoes within the quiet of the night, and Peeta listens on as it drives out of the parking lot.

He knows what he must do, but something lacks in the finality of his decision, and he doesn't quite understand why.

* * *

Train stations are the busiest on weekends.

Capitol's budget has allocated a generous amount of money towards improvement and development of transportation. More trains were created, and more routes were added. The cost to commute has also been reduced; therefore there is a significant increase of people travelling from district to district. Although, an entrance to the Capitol will require a couple of paper works and a stamp of approval.

The addition of train stations enable easier transport of goods from coast to coast, and has also decreased the jobless rate dramatically. Because of this, many citizens have acquired work in nearby districts.

Katniss sits on a bench close to the train platform, clutching her bag closely to herself. There are too many people travelling, hauling their baggage across in rushed manner. No one seems to recognize her, or bother looking at her. She glances at the time impatiently. She has been waiting at the station for a little bit more than an hour, and the train should be arriving in half an hour. No sign of Peeta.

She stands up and straightens her dress, and begins pacing back and forth. Suddenly everything sounds considerably louder to her. The blare of a train, its engine when it screeches to a halt and when it revs before it leaves, the footsteps of strangers that seem to close in on her from every corner. She checks the time again. Fifteen minutes until boarding time for District Twelve. Still no sign of Peeta.

A nagging sense of disappointment floods her thoughts, as she concludes more and more that maybe things will not turn out the way she has planned. She has become more anxious, but still some hope lingers in seeing his face move through the crowd of commuters to greet her.

Five more minutes to board, and she is lined up on the queue. Her head darts nervously around, worried that Peeta is searching for her on the platform but can't see her at all. She looks behind her and realizes the line of waiting commuters has stretched double the length and she can't step out of it anymore. An attendant finally asks for her ticket stub and she hesitantly hands it over.


	11. Chapter 11: The Insider

**Author's Notes: Hi guys! I'm in the process of finishing the final chapter to this story, and it kinda makes me sad, because I've had alot of fun writing this and it's my first THG fic. Although, some scenes I found difficult to write, so it added to some delay, plus, I work full-time, and English is my second language so I'm not exactly speedy Gonzales when it comes to spitting out material. I'm already cooking up ideas for my second TGH fic, (again, very Everlark-centric) just need to take a little more in-depth thinking as to how I'm going to execute it. Execution is everything to me.**

**This chapter is an ode to my long-time love, X-Files.**

* * *

She looks through the series of windows, peering outside as she walks inside the train before settling on a seat. Her eyes haven't torn away from the platform trudged on by rushing commuters, scanning faces tediously with alert eyes. The engine roars on and she feels the train move an inch forward. Her heart skips at the sad realization that perhaps Peeta was not ready to forgive her at all.

She lets out a breath she didn't know she's been holding, shuts her eyes and hangs her head. She sniffs quietly but shakes herself off, and realizes how tired she has been.

The nine am train departing from Capitol, arriving in District Twelve leaves on time.

Near Platforms 4, 5 and 6, where the ticket booth and concession are situated, Peeta listens on as the train blasts out of the station, neck-deep in thoughts, sitting down with other commuters. He swivels his head around, trying to peer over the well-manicured bushes, and watches the tail end of the train disappear into the open.

He picks up a bag on the ground he placed near his foot and heads out of the train station. His bag is flung over his shoulder and he looks up at the sky, concluding that the weather is decent enough for a long walk as he marches on to his parents' house on Hurst Avenue.

* * *

He breezes through the living room and notes the brand new rug underneath the coffee table. On the coffee table sits a pile of old newspapers his dad has been reading, specifically the District 12 news section. The fireplace looks like it has just been cleaned spotless, and he steps in closer to examine the family pictures his mom has strategically placed on the shelf. From the far left; an old solo portrait of their father, in the middle are high school graduation portraits of his older brothers, Maximilian and Jono, and then him, and on the far right is a more recent picture of their mother. Right above the solo framed pictures, on the wall, hangs a complete family portrait taken in a Capitol studio.

He sits on his favourite spot on the sofa, head hunched over, and elbows resting on his knees. He looks up as soon as he hears his dad's heavy footsteps toddling down the stairs. His dad crosses the living room and sits on an armchair across Peeta.

"Son?" He recognizes the fully packed duffel bag sitting beside Peeta on the couch and is suddenly concerned.

Peeta sighs and skims through a headline on the District 12 newspaper that read: 'New Medical Facility on Behalf of Everdeens'. He plays with the mockingjay pin in his hands.

"I thought I had it all figured out, Dad. It almost felt like I had everything."

"It's great that you're doing very well at your age, but you're still young, and you have more mistakes to make, and even lot more to learn."

Peeta nods and places the pin down on the table, and takes the newspaper dated a month ago to look at a picture on the front page, the hospital Katniss' mom assisted in funding and building.

"Katniss asked me to come back to Twelve. I didn't realize I was missing a lot until…" he pauses and almost looks embarrassed,"…until she came reeling back into my life."

His dad's hard expression softens into a smile. "Son, what are you afraid of?"

"So many things have happened…and now I'm just confused," Peeta's eyes are filled with struggle as they meet his dad's, then he buries his head right back into his hands. "I don't know what's real anymore, and you know, I've always tried to stay strong, but…it's just…," he lifts his head back up, now observing his hands,"…It's not the same without her."

"I'll tell you what's real right now, Peeta," his dad begins. "Somewhere along the way, Katniss made a mistake, and realized that she wants you back, almost bending backwards trying to reconcile with you. You have an unborn child together that is already in grave danger. And this is going to sound very cliché, but you will never be fully happy if you don't follow your heart."

Peeta sits up and straightens his shoulder, slightly nodding at his father in gratitude, a small, renewed sense of confidence in his smile. He then stands up and moves towards him, who also leaves the armchair in response to give him an embrace. His dad pats him in the back.

"I'll see you again son. I will visit you back in our district. I would like to see my granddaughter."

* * *

She is jolted awake in half-sweat as the train car shakes wildly in its tracks while doing a turn, and calms back down when she remembers she is still commuting. She observes the time overhead. It has been four hours of travel and she is halfway through District Eleven. She asks for a cup of tea and blueberry scones from an attendant, and watches wistfully out the window, seeing nothing but zooming trees, replaced by more trees.

There has been a heavy weight on her chest she is trying to ignore desperately since she departed the Capitol, and tries with all her might to switch her interest on to the movie that is playing on the big screen in front of the train car. She wants as much distraction as possible.

She stops at two blueberry scones then pushes her plate away, and grabs her bag that is sitting beside the box of blanket on the seat beside her. She searches for a compact mirror when she is struck with a realization. Her heart starts pumping faster with anxiety, more sweat forming on her forehead, hands madly scouring the inside of the bag. She never carries too many items.

The bottled cure is missing.

* * *

Peeta avoids the main roads on route back to his house from his parents' house. He figures he needs to tie a couple of loose ends before he leaves for District Twelve. He is transferring the ownership of the house to his middle brother for the meantime, and has to terminate his housemaids' employment.

He has been walking for a good hour when he suddenly turns into a street that will lead rather away from his destination. He suddenly re-appears from behind a tall, old tree, and grabs the collar of a man in a trench coat and sunglasses, shoving and pinning him violently against a backyard fence.

"You've been following me!" Peeta shouts into the man's face. "Why are you following me?!" He is significantly shorter than the stranger who is thrashing against his clutch, but his arms are stronger than they look.

The man is trying to free his throat from Peeta's hands so he could talk.

"Someone else has the cure. It was taken from the girl. You need to go to back to MEDTECC," he says vaguely, semi choking.

"What?! Who has it? Who is doing this?" Peeta's voice is cracking and his grasp around the man's collar has tightened even more.

"Dr Parenti is dead. The project is over. They wanted the serum back."

Peeta loosens his death grip and lets the man fumble back into the fence. "Who are you?" his eyebrows are furrowed at the apprehension that the danger has unfolded at a bigger rate.

"I'm one of the underground informants. A Capitol's rat," The man re-adjusts his shade over his nose and dusts himself off. "I have given you very valuable information." And with that, he turns around and strides away.

Peeta sprints through the remaining distance to his house, jumps into his hover car with a stopover at MEDTECC in mind.

* * *

Mrs. Everdeen finds herself running distressed to answer the obnoxious raps at the door, and opens it to reveal Katniss, dropping her bag and the box absent mindedly on the floor, distraught and barely holding herself together. Prim pokes her head out behind their mother, with fretful eyes and timid feet. Katniss falls and sobs into her mother's arms.

"Katniss…"

"I lost it mom, it was…I had it, and it was gone," she is almost in hysterics over the effort she had put into searching for the serum and trying to win Peeta back, to no avail, only to come back to Twelve empty handed.

"You have to calm down Katniss," her mother said firmly, checking Katniss' eyes and her temperature, which was skyrocketing right underneath her hands. "We have to bring you to the hospital now." There is an urgency in her voice as Prim retreats to hide behind the door.

Suddenly Katniss' sobs turn into painful cries as her stomach starts to churn and punch from the inside. Her knees buckle underneath her and it takes support from Mrs. Everdeen and Prim to prevent her from slamming onto the floor.

Her mother's voice has raised a notch higher.

"You're going into labour."

* * *

Peeta screeches into a halt on a street corner that leads into MEDTECC. The entrance to the facility is shut down, with faint, red laser fencing the perimeter in as a cautionary means, and the parking grounds are swathed with a number of paramedics, one fire truck, and police cars.

He gets out of his hover car and overlooks the area to study it, then decides to jump over the laser fence from a corner. He just about catches a gurney with a wrapped body strapped on top, a murdered doctor Parenti; ascend into the ambulance and ER personnel slamming the door shut. The sirens wail and the ambulance whizzes out of the vicinity.

A police man spots him and calls him out on his PA system, sending the rest of the peacekeepers on guard. Peeta ducks behind stalled paramedics and sneaks his way to the back of the building.

Inside, the halls are completely vacated. He tries to recall where Dr. Parenti's office is located, following the thin trail of fresh blood against the white tiles and white walls. It bothers him that the sight of blood does not bother him much anymore. After emerging as a victor from the Hunger Games, he supposes, he has grown an extra layer of skin and grit.

It's definitely something he is not sure he should be proud of.

He finds himself irritated by his own heavy thread.

Something is making repressed noises from behind one of the doors near Dr. Parenti's office. He is on guard, feet poised, ready to pounce on attack.

"Peeta, to your right!" the small, raspy voice says. He barely recognizes Haymitch in the dark, pale light coming from the back scarcely illuminating his long dirty blond hair, eyes peering through a heavy, metal door that can only be locked from the inside.

Peeta scuffles and quickly disappears into the room where Haymitch was hiding in, shutting the door very quietly, as peacekeepers fill in the hallway with guns perched on their sides, ready to neutralize threat.

"Haymitch, what are you doing here, playing spy?" Peeta is trying to speak below a whisper, squatting down; fingers propping him up off the floor. Haymitch is panting gracelessly, sitting on the ground carelessly with his legs outstretched.

"Boy. I started getting random notes coming out of the wazoo the moment Katniss re-appeared here in Capitol. Even Effie started getting them. On a normal day I'd have chucked them out by now but the notes were getting very serious."


	12. Chapter 12: Homecoming

"That's odd. Someone was following me earlier today, from my parents' house, he called himself a Capitol mole," he paused at a newly formed thought. "He was probably watching me in the train station, for all I know."

"A Capitol slave quietly working against the Capitol," Haymitch leans in closer to tone down the conversation. "Listen, someone wants your baby. The Capitol is interested in it, but I don't think it's Snow. Once that baby is out, after coming into contact and being saved by the serum, there may be after-effects, although not life threatening at all."

"What?!," There is a slight look of ridicule on Peeta's face.

"Your daughter may inherit the strongest trait in your genes, and also Katniss'. Whatever your main strength is right now, she will also have it, but multiplied, a whole lot." Haymitch puts an eerie emphasis on 'a whole lot'.

Peeta's face is fixed, eyes dilating at a realization. "Is my daughter is going to be a mutt?!" Haymitch motions wildly for him to bring his voice down.

"No, Peeta, your daughter will not turn into a deranged half-animal. But since your asset is your strength, she may be as strong, or stronger, than you in the future." Haymitch has never looked so serious before that Peeta almost finds it bothersome.

Peeta gives a short, pained laugh in the most inappropriate situation. "All of this sounds too bizarre Haymitch. Sounds like something out of a Capitol comic book."

"That is exactly it!" Haymitch almost scares Peeta by suddenly bolting upright. "Keep in mind, boy, this is a Capitol product you're dealing with. Nothing is that straight and simple."

"I just want my baby alive and healthy."

"No worries. She will be," Haymitch fishes the bottle of cure from his pocket, that was once in Katniss' possession, and hands it over to Peeta, who is glaring at him speechless and dizzy.

"Now go and get the hell out of here, there is no time."

Peeta shoves the bottle deep into his pant pocket, mouths a Thank You to Haymitch, and silently moves through the room to find another way out of the facility.

Haymitch leans back on the leg of a table, drained of energy and sense. He finally pulls his other hand out of his pocket, the one he concealed the whole time from Peeta, and uncurls his mangled fingers, knuckles battered and bruised. He scoffs at it.

He shoots a look underneath a desk across the room and grimaces at a peacekeeper, sprawled across the floor on his back, bloody and unconscious.

"Guess I still got it," he quietly convinces himself.

* * *

Prim stands outside the hospital door where Katniss is confined and wailing in pain. Their mother concluded that a large amount of stress has caused Katniss to launch into labour prematurely. Prim brings her hands up to cover both of her ears, frightened by her sister's abnormally high pitched screams.

Inside the room, Mrs. Everdeen is reading Katniss' internal condition off a beeping screen, jotting down notes on her clipboard. One of the nurses is constantly on her tail, awaiting order. Katniss has suddenly fallen ghostly silent, but still breathing heavily. This prompts Mrs. Everdeen and another nurse to peek in on her, every inch of their faces covered in masks except their eyes which are the only indication of any facial expression.

Mrs. Everdeen glances and nods at the nurse and she leaves her side, sauntering to a device Katniss can't see, and injects more fluid into a long tube connecting to her wrist. Mrs. Everdeen grabs a towel and pats Katniss' forehead dry.

"You'll be alright, my daughter, just maintain the breathing exercise I taught you for now." More beeping has come in sync with the previous one, creating a chorus.

Katniss' eyelids fall heavy, and she keeps coiling and uncoiling her fingers, trying to channel the pain elsewhere, and manages a cough before speaking.

"Am I going to lose her?" she asks with a weak voice.

"We have to proceed with an alternative approach. I know it's easier said than done, but I just need you to remain calm so you can keep a low heart rate."

"You didn't answer my question," Katniss says, closing her eyes.

"You are not going to lose your baby, Katniss," her mother ensures her. Katniss catches her mother's eyes and holds it for a moment, then lets her head fall to the side.

On a spur of the moment, one of the machines that is regulating Katniss' condition flashes in red and sets off in an uproar of beeps. Mrs. Everdeen glances nervously at her team of assistants, and then dares to get a glimpse of Katniss suddenly writhing in brutal pain, whipping her head back and forth in the pillow, tears streaming down her face brought on by simultaneous convulsions.

* * *

Gale is standing outside the hospital building with his arms crossed, resting on one of the wide, white columns surrounding the main entrance. He is not happy at the news that Katniss came back with nothing, and by the way Prim was talking to him about what happened with Peeta, heartbroken as well.

Gale almost feels like hurting him for hurting Katniss, and entertaining such thought puzzles even himself. He takes a fist and pummels it into the stone structure behind him. He pulls his hand back and stares blankly at the blood forming underneath his skin.

A loud noise coming from the eastern horizon catches his attention, amplifying in volume as it draws nearer. Gale's jaw drops open as a hover craft appears in the sky, rigid and monumental, and it starts to slowly descend, flirting with the hospital building. The dazzling wind caused by the landing of the hover craft slightly blows him back, sending his hair in disarray, hands reacting to shield his eyes from all the dust and debris it assembles, just to be pushed back into the ground.

He involuntarily reaches in his back and pockets for any type of weapon, only to realize he is defenseless in a shirt and old pair of jeans. He turns vigilant, approaching the hover craft while its door is starting to slide open. The flurries of dust have not settled, and it's making it difficult for him to see the person emerging from behind the door.

He makes out the black hair and pale skin, noticing the troubled look on Peeta's face as he surfaces from the cloud of dust in front of Gale.

"Gale…" Peeta starts with a stiff smile.

"What brings you here?" Gale asks, re-crossing his arms, as if Peeta is not allowed to walk any further.

Peeta is taken aback and his fuse is suddenly lit up.

"I see you have taken a different career path of patrolling the border now."

"I suggest you not go in there. People are not pleased with you."

Peeta shakes his head. "Katniss may as well be dying right now. I need to help her. Let me through Gale," he says, trying to control his voice. "It's important."

And when Gale doesn't move one inch, Peeta steps forward anyway, shoulder purposely colliding into his. Gale is quick to spring back, reaches out and grabs Peeta's shoulder, and tugs him around to face him. As soon as their eyes lock again, Peeta takes in a sharp breath of air and pushes Gale square on the chest with both hands. This sends Gale staggering back, stunned, underestimating Peeta's quiet strength.

He resumes his upright position and lunges at Peeta without thinking twice, his bruised fist connecting with Peeta's jaw. Peeta falls over, back flat on the ground, and chokes in the dirt. Gale walks over to his still body while Peeta tries to catch his breath, and grasps Peeta by his shirt collar to make him stand up. Peeta strikes back by punching Gale underneath the eye. Both collapse like flailing fish on the ground, sweat and few traces of blood on their faces, panting like there was no oxygen.

They roll over and lay on their stomach a few feet in between, with attentive eyes trained on each other, sizing the other one up.

By then Peeta notices the bottle of cure rolling on the ground away from him, and gasps nervously. A skinny pair of legs run up to it and stops its tracks.

Both watch as Prim picks it up, a sheer look of recognition on her face as she studies the bottle. She glances at Gale and Peeta, and the hover craft that is randomly parked in front of the hospital, tightens her grasp around the bottle and makes a mad dash into the building.

* * *

Lines. All she sees are lines. Lines floating, then dissolving, connecting to another. Lines turning into waves. They blur, connect then disconnect. Blurry waves swimming in white lazy light. She is in awe, and as she tries to reach out and touch the waves, she sees a watered-down outline of her mother's face, peering down at her. She tries to disengage from her body so she could disengage from the pain.

"Katniss, good news, we have the cure. I will proceed with the operation…" Mrs. Everdeen trails off in a strict, doctor tone she uses when she is at work, devoid of any motherly affection.

Katniss is suddenly in a flood of surprise mixed in with relief, and draws strength from it, and she begins to even out her breaths with renewed vigor, barely hearing a nurse at the bottom of her feet yelling out for her to push.

* * *

There is only one couch in the waiting room, which is currently deafly mute. Prim strategically sits in the middle of Peeta and Gale, who are both hunched over, refusing to talk. She twiddles her thumbs and grows uneasy by the minute.

She sighs and tries to break the ice.

"I'm going to be an aunt. And you're not," she says to no one specifically.

Peeta is grinning at his hands. "I think Gale is going to be an aunt too." Gale has perked up and is shooting Peeta a grim look over Prim's head.

"I will teach her how to braid hair. And read her lots of books about flowers and plants," Prim continues.

"That's good! Then maybe you and her could braid aunt Peeta's hair, together, and have a game, like who can braid faster," Gale says, patting Prim's back gently. "Just look at how long his hair is now." He cocks an eyebrow at Peeta.

"You are both not her aunts!," Prim protests. She looks at both Gale and Peeta's faces intuitively. "Why are you two so dirty?" she asks, with a little disgust in her voice, looking at dark smudges on Gale's shirt.

"Because uhmm…" Peeta trails.

"We both tripped…and then, we fell down the ground…together…" Gale says slowly, trying hard to put thought into it.

"And then we sort of, just, rolled around." Peeta and Gale are half-nodding at each other, trying to read each other's eyes.

"That's a lie," Prim answers, assured. "You were having a race to see who can get to my sister first."

"Now why would we do that?" Gale asks in amusement.

"Because you both like her."

Gale abruptly feels air trapped in his throat, glaring at Prim. Peeta is doing the same, but his eyes dart between her and Gale.

Just then, the door to Katniss' room flies open and an older nurse's loud voice booms in all direction. Peeta shoots straight up off the couch.

"The husband. Is the husband here?" she asks, attention mostly on the clipboard in her hands.

Peeta halts and stutters. "I'm the father…"

The nurse commands to wash himself clean in the bathroom and to follow her into the delivery room afterwards. Peeta straightens his shirt and pants, sweating bullets and almost forgets his heart on the floor.


	13. Chapter 13: The Baker's Father

He is almost galloping artlessly towards the bed Katniss is resting in. He glances at a wide variety of different coloured tubes connecting into her body and looks to Mrs. Everdeen with slight terror.

"Is she going to be alright?" he asks, his hand reaching out to Katniss' face to tuck clammy, unruly hair behind her ear. He leans down to plant a kiss on her glistening forehead.

"She's in and out of it, but she's in a good condition. She needs plenty of rest," she answers. "It's been a rough day." She leaves his side and tends to one of the machines, re-confirming her vitals.

Peeta takes this moment to move close into her ear, trying to hold back tears threatening to roll from his eyes.

"Hey Katniss. I'm home," he promises, "I'm here to stay." He picks up one of her hands semi-covered in bandages, and brings it up to his lips. He watches her longingly as she remains still, chest rising and falling, and he could almost feel his fear flee when her eyes start to shift under closed lids.

He is distracted as Mrs. Everdeen returns and stands still behind him, softly calling his name.

"I think someone wants to meet you." She presents to him his daughter, a pink, tiny baby girl crowned with thin slivers of dark hair, wrapped in a white blanket, sleeping peacefully. Peeta stands up straight and is awestruck as he extends his hands and carefully holds her for the very first time. His facial expression is a kaleidoscope of flowing emotions, as joy, love, and admiration flash across his face, and lets out a laugh that almost sounds like a sob. His smile is stretched further as the baby begins to open her eyes, squinting up at him, and her arms start to flail, trying to grab at the air between them.

"Hi there!" Peeta greets her. He leans in to touch the tip of his nose to her cheek. He is almost floating in high spirit.

"Welcome back, Peeta Mellark," Mrs. Everdeen says, and allows herself a full, genuine smile.

Katniss has rendered awake but remains silent, watching Peeta and their baby daughter swaying by her bedside, through tired, ajar eyes. She tries to smile, but her whole body is exhausted, and her last thought is how much she wants to hold Lila, and how much she wants to kiss Peeta, before sleep blurs her vision and anchors her down again into the dark.

* * *

It took Katniss two days to fully recover, given the amount of vitamins and constant monitoring courtesy of her mom.

Peeta has made the official arrangement to move into the house in the Victor's Village that is under his title after winning the Hunger Games. It showcases the most trees bordering the front fence, and it also has a pond in the massive, open backyard that stretches out into a little wooded area, thoroughly overrun by tall barley, shared by the rest of the empty Victors' houses' backyards except Haymitch's.

There are already a few essential furniture in the house, such as beds, a couch, stove and dining set. They received an elegant cradle from Haymitch and Effie as a present, and stylish baby clothes from Cinna, flown in from the Capitol.

But it also took two days for the most heinous kind of news to reach Peeta.

He emerges from an afternoon nap, a baby towel dropping off his shoulder and waking next to a slumbering Lila in the crib while Katniss is clamoring in the kitchen, trying to arrange the ingredients for dinner. They are having rabbit stew for the night, and she is cutting up beets, carrots and katniss roots. Peeta volunteered to stay awake the previous night when Lila completely refrained from sleeping.

Katniss pauses from the chopping board and approaches Peeta in the living room, wiping her hands on the apron she is wearing. "Peeta, your phone has been ringing…somewhere." She scans the room, hearing the continuous faint noise of his cell phone.

He searches frantically for it, and regrets setting the volume of the ringer on low, because he is struggling to remember the area where he last placed it down. He finally finds it tucked underneath a cushion of an armchair, picks it out and then settles down onto the chair.

His mother's voice begins, and it is almost inaudible, quivering and smothered in tears as she informs him that his father was involved in an accident on the road. A hover car rear-ended him with such brute force, and in turn, his father vehicle crashed into a transport truck in front of him. He was killed instantly.

The last detail she tells him is that the rest of the family is flying back to District 12 temporarily to bury his remains. His father has previously indicated in his will that he must be buried in his hometown.

He hangs up the phone and stares at it, face vacant of any emotion, the screen displaying that he has two old, un-played voice messages from his dad. Katniss has a panicked look on her face by judging Peeta's strained eyes and heavier breaths, and she kneels down on the carpeted floor, positioning herself between Peeta's legs and looking up at him, searching his eyes for anything.

"My dad got into an accident. He's gone. He's not ever coming back."

Katniss swallows a lump in her throat and presses her lips close as they tremble. "Peeta…oh no..." she breathless and on the verge of tears.

He brings the phone back up to his ear, as if hypnotized, and dares to listen to the messages.

_"Hi son, it's your dad! Just wanted to know how Katniss is doing. Is the baby safe? Well call me back, ok?"_

Click. Next message.

_"Son it's your dad again. You must be very busy in there. I heard Lila has your eyes. But she still looks a lot like Katniss. I'm about to book a flight there. Your mom though, cannot come. So I'm dragging your brothers' asses with me. See you soon!"_

Click. End of new messages.

Peeta's hand trembles as he presses a button to save the messages, and then curls his fingers around the phone in stirring anger. His face screws in pain, eyes shut tightly, and drops the cell phone on the floor.

"...my...my dad is not coming here anymore, Katniss. He won't be visiting," he pauses and lets a round of hiccup go, "he won't get to meet Lila..."

Katniss reaches out and wraps her arms around his neck as a tear runs down her face, pulling him down to her level, telling him "I'm sorry" in a hushed voice, like a mantra. His shoulders heave violently as he sobs into Katniss' cheek, calling out after his father. She frees a hand to land on his back and rubs it repeatedly, her heart breaking into many pieces as she lets Peeta grieve.

He spends the next couple of days half alive and zoned out, randomly pulling out his cell phone to lift it up to his ear to listen to his dad's saved voice messages.

* * *

It has been glorified that the weather is always depressing in District Twelve. Gray clouds constantly loom over, although it almost never rains. And when it does rain, it pours hard, and has the tendency to last for days.

There are two graveyards in the district. One of them had to be expanded because of increased death rate, a troubled indication that hunger has become more rampant in town.

So it begins to rain after a few bible passages are read by a priest, standing over Mr. Mellark's closed wooden coffin sunk halfway into the underground. The rain decides to come down a little bit harder.

On one side of the coffin stand the immediate family. Mrs. Mellark is positioned beside the priest and opens a black umbrella, staring at a patch of dead grass under his feet. The oldest brother, Maximilian, stands close to their mother, with his five year old son clinging onto one of his legs, looking clueless and scared. Followed by Jono, the middle brother whom resembles Peeta the most, holding up an umbrella to shield Peeta from the rain while he cradles Lila wrapped in a yellow blanket.

Katniss and Maximilian's wife stand on the opposite side from across the Mellarks, having a hard time hearing what the priest is preaching because of the thunderous rain continuing its onslaught. Some have thrown in wet mud and flowers into the coffin already to pay their respect, and turned around to leave for home to avoid the harsh weather.

The priest finishes a couple of more passages and closes the service, now allowing the family members a moment to bid their last farewell before burying the coffin underneath layers of dirt.

More mourners leave as more rain pour down, expressing their sympathy and condolences while embracing Mrs. Mellark. Her eyes are sore, hanging on to a soaked handkerchief. Maximilian and Jono walk towards her and hug her close, black umbrellas clashing into each others', and promises to wait for their mother in their old home, the first bakery their dad has ever built.

Finally, Peeta approaches his mother, scrambling with an umbrella in one hand and carrying Lila in the other, who is now fully awake and is making garbling noises with her mouth. Mrs. Mellark observes the baby with a small smile, eyes softening in enchantment. She moves forward to take the baby from Peeta's grasp and coos at her, caressing a small, chubby cheek with her finger.

She looks at Peeta, mirroring back his sorrowful face. "Your father was a wonderful man," she says in between slight hiccups.

"I'm so sorry, mom," he answers gently. He watches as more dirt is dumped on top of the coffin that is now sitting six feet under the ground. He then glances at Katniss who has not budged at all on the other side, now standing alone, eyes downcast and gripping her umbrella.

This sight and feel are all too familiar to her. Nothing is sadder than the melancholy of a last goodbye. When she lost her father to a mining accident when she was younger, she remembers teetering on hysteria when she peeked into his closed coffin, only to find out it was empty after all, despite her mother telling her otherwise. It took her a while to figure out that her father's remains after the bombing were too fractional to put together, and some body parts were also missing, most likely annihilated completely.

"Family was the most important to him. He loved all of you boys dearly," Mrs. Mellark continues, her expression as if she is remembering a happy thought. "Family is everything,"

"And dad loved you very much," Peeta says. Mrs. Mellark closes her eyes, nodding slightly as she sniffs.

"Will you forgive me, Peeta?" she asks, the baby is now yawning, moving restlessly in her grasp.

All he says is "You're my mother…" as he encircles an arm around her and places a light kiss on her forehead. The baby suddenly cries in response to a roll of thunder overhead. Peeta gingerly takes Lila back, making sure she is protected from the rain, and heads for the car to settle her in properly.

Katniss starts to fidget when she realizes it's just her and Mrs. Mellark who are the only people remaining on the gravesite; the undertakers have also ducked out and left the scene to move to a drier place. They are wordless, and still, looming across each other and atop the slab of wet mud separating them. Katniss tries to gather some guts.

Mrs. Mellark's eyes are unfocused and distant, as Katniss takes steps to skirt around the upturned ground and approaches her slowly, inching up to her closer than she had originally calculated. Katniss reaches out and brings a comforting hand up, resting it on Mrs. Mellark's shoulder, breathing in unison with her. Katniss' gaze settles on the drops of water sliding down her umbrella, mesmerized by its continuum.


	14. Chapter 14: Golden Meadow

Mrs. Mellark finally turns to face Katniss, giving her a look that Katniss can read as immeasurable pain and regret. Katniss tears her hand off Mrs. Mellark and reaches into her pocket, pulling out a fresh napkin and gives it to her modestly. Mrs. Mellark switches her gaze from the napkin back to Katniss before she accepts it, and then proceeds to wipe her eyes.

Seconds stretch, and Katniss puts her hand back up on Mrs. Mellark's shoulder and gives it a slight caress. Mrs. Mellark finally turns and moves into Katniss' open arms, resting her head on her shoulder, and weeps for her beloved husband one last time, soaking Katniss' black shirt while both her hands hold her close.

Peeta watches them from afar, observing through rain-stained windows and a heavy heart as he waits for Katniss inside the car.

* * *

Many years pass, and memories accumulate.

President Snow has completely surrendered to his heart problems, and the fate of the Hunger Games float on limbo, passed around in between newly appointed leaders. There is a common thread of uncertainty and conflict, for some governors want to resume the games on behalf of the late President Snow, and the rest are opposed to it as a whole.

Haymitch has remained in District Twelve, and was able to persuade an ambiguous Effie Trinkett to move in with him. She proved very difficult in the beginning with her outlandish requests and diva-like attitude, but softened with time, toning down her vibe, the hair and the makeup. She can be spotted strolling around the district with wearing her natural blond hair down and sporting simple pink sundresses, overly cheerful and constantly planning events to involve the whole town.

Peeta's mother and brothers returned to the Capitol to help run Peeta's business, BreadRun, as per Peeta's request. The second bakery instalment that was supposed to be built in south Capitol was not able to pull through and the plan was cancelled. The profit has slowed down when Peeta left, but it was still generating ample amount of money, and it has proven itself to still be Capitol's favourite after being duplicated and imitated by others.

In District Twelve, one summer morning, Katniss and Peeta stand in the middle of the old Mellark Bakery, depreciated and neglected over the years. Dusts and cobwebs have gathered, the floors are flimsy and generate too much noise when stepped on, and the cash register seems to have been stolen. Peeta finds his way through to the back, examining the decrepit brick oven, and scattered pie racks flocked by the exit door.

Katniss comes up from behind and holds Peeta's hand, looking up at him with a closed smile.

"I really do hope you still have your painting skills intact," Peeta says, eyes still scanning the interior of the musty bakery.

"I don't know Peeta. It has been awhile. I may need a refresher."

By the afternoon, the contractors have arrived, geared with saws, hammers and nails, and a truck-full of lumber and bricks. A small chunk of the street has to be closed for the construction, the news spreading out through the district like wild fire. Work has officially started to rebuild the bakery.

Katniss sits cross legged on the floor of their living room, armed with a medium sized paintbrush, and dips it into a black paint bucket. She re-aligns herself over the huge wooden sign, with "Mellark Bakery" stenciled across in big, simple font. She finally finishes filling in the letter E with excruciating detail.

Peeta's hand suddenly appears from behind, wrapping his hand around hers and the paintbrush, and guides her handstrokes with a little more speed and enthusiasm, moving on to letter L.

"Hey! Do you mind?!," Katniss growls. He stretches his leg trying to get into a more comfortable sitting position behind Katniss.

"It looks good! But, really, Katniss, I don't have all day." He rests his chin on Katniss shoulder and burrows his nose in the area behind her right ear. She playfully swings back and jabs his ribs with her pointed elbow and he falls back onto the floor, with a feigned look of suffering while grabbing his chest.

"Didn't your mother teach you to share paintbrush with others?" he asks while lying flat on the floor, faking a choke. His eyes settle on the uneven patterns of the ceiling above him, suddenly intrigued by the spacing and width of different paint strokes. Katniss' head suddenly pops up into his vision, floating over him, loose dark hair cascading down her shoulders. She is hovering over him with one arm supporting her up off the floor and the other hand holding the paintbrush, pointed indecisively at Peeta's face. She proceeds to straddle his hips snugly.

"You know, I have a hidden talent. I can draw still-life too. Very, very life-like," Katniss teases him, swinging the paintbrush in a spiral motion, pretending to trace the outline of his face, which does not look amused. Peeta wriggles on the floor.

"You don't dare," he huffs. He has grown out all of the black hair he sported in his Capitol days and stays true to his blond roots, jaws and chin covered with short, rugged facial hair.

Peeta watches the black paint converge slowly down to the tip of the brush. He starts to humorously blow the paint upwards to prevent it from dripping on his nose as Katniss leaves it floating overhead.

Katniss grins wickedly before she drops her paintbrush aiming at Peeta's cheek, as Peeta reflexively pushes her hand away, but delayed one second too late. The tip of the brush skims lightly across his skin, leaving a thin trail of black paint on his cheek. He brings his arms up on both her sides and begins to tickle her with much ardor.

A small noise emerges, coming a few feet away, adjacent to Peeta's head resting on the floor. Both Katniss and Peeta's heads slowly turn towards the sound of someone clearing their throat.

"See, Rye, this is when you should close your eyes," Lila says, eight years old, light brown skin and haunting blue eyes, long dark hair in a ponytail.

"Why?" her little brother asks innocently, a round little thing with wavy ash blonde hair and gray eyes, five years younger than Lila, and has a certain affinity towards her.

"Because they're doing this!," Lila grabs Rye's whole, chubby face and pushes her own into his, lips puckered out and making over-exaggerated kissing noises. "Mwah mwah mwah mwah!"

Rye is revolted, face souring at his sister. "Eewwww! Cooties!"

Katniss jumps off of Peeta's hips as if Peeta was suddenly on fire. She seems to have noticed something on Lila's face as she inches closer to her.

"Lila, honey, are you wearing lipstick?" she doesn't know if she should be angry or start fits of laughter.

"But Aunt Fifi said it's okay!" she springs back a little bit, hands outstretched, and face set in stone. Katniss makes a mental reminder to sit Effie down for a talk regarding kids.

"Aunt Pee Pee." Rye babbles.

"No, Rye, it's letter F. Fee-fee," Lila shoves her face once again right into Rye's and over emphasizes the letter F, blowing air through her two front teeth.

"Alright, you two. It's bath time soon." Peeta tries to swoop in and grab Rye, who is now up in arms, running awkwardly in circles.

"But daddy, Rye and I want to feed the fish in the backyard first." Lila protests.

"Remember, little Rye is not allowed near the pond yet." Katniss reminds their daughter, picking up toys and blankets on the floor.

"I'll look after him!" Lila pleads. Peeta gives her a slight nod and Lila bolts out of the house, making a bee-line to the door, with Rye running behind with his chubby little legs, trying to keep up with her.

Outside in the back, they plunge into a maze of tall, swaying barley, finding their way through to the pond. Standing by the edge of the pond, Lila contemplates Rye's safety and scans the area with a quick eye before they approach any closer. She spots a dead tree log lying on the ground, nestled inside tall grass. She glances at Rye and smiles.

Lila trots towards the huge log that is twice her size and without thinking twice, lifts it up effortlessly and rests the tip of the log over her shoulder, little hands balancing both sides, and starts to drag it across. She places it down carefully along the edge of the pond and gestures for Rye to come forward.

"Don't go over this log ok? You're only allowed behind this, and then you can feed the fish," she says as she taps it firmly.

They perch over the log with small, dead bugs in their hands, waiting for fish to swim closer. Moments stretch and one finally approaches Rye, and he starts to giggle.

It doesn't take long until a large number of them is congregating right under Rye and Lila's outstretched hands over the pond, the fish glowing in bright orange, creating a magnificent light show from underneath the water. The two are mesmerized, as the setting sun above them casts glitters sprinkled across the water surface.

Katniss and Peeta stand side by side in the living room, observing a good chunk of wall.

"Looks like we have a little artist in the making," Katniss says, subconsciously squeezing Peeta's arm. Both look on tenderly at four stick people drawn in different crayon colours on the wall, and Peeta makes an assumption that Rye is the culprit.

Peeta sighs inwardly, studying the stick person representing him, with a nest of yellow swirls as his hair, and disproportionately taller than everybody else.

"How come I look like a giant?"

"You're worried about your size? Look at my hair," Katniss points at her stick figure, with long, cracked wavy black lines as her mane. "It hasn't been combed for years."

"Hair or no hair, you will always be beautiful Katniss," Peeta has a valiant grin on his face and a seductive set of eyes, and plants a kiss on her eyelid.

"Peeta, have I ever told you how sappy you are,?" Katniss purrs, gaze landing on his smiling lips, "And how much I actually don't mind it?"

Peeta laughs half-heartedly. "I am all sap. Sap is what it's all about," he suddenly locks his arm very tightly around Katniss, pinning and immobilizing both her arms, as he whips the paintbrush from behind his back and flashes it at her, taunting her with it back and forth.

"Maybe we should get back to painting the sign, no?" Katniss suggests, a faked look of dread crossing her features while Peeta zeroes the brush in on her nose. "The Mellark Bakery cannot operate without its sign."

Peeta shrugs his shoulders off. "We can get the kids to finish that, don't worry." He moves forward into her until her back is pressed against the now colourful wall courtesy of Rye. "But now I'd like to show you _my_ still-life painting skills."

* * *

**Author's Notes: The End! Thank you for reading! **

**Some trivial stuff:**

***I was starting to feel bad that Haymitch is portrayed as a hopeless drunk in most fanfics, so I made him mostly sober in mine. I like Haymitch..he grew on me**

***The Capitol mole is...MR. X!**

***In my world, Lila is a representation of Rogue from the X-Men, for superhuman strength. But Lila doesn't fly...let's not get too crazy. **

***I read somewhere that Suzie revealed KatPee's son's name is Rye and that is just the cutest, most appropriate thing**

***When I read Mockingjay, the twisted part of me was pining for a Gale VS Peeta brawl, because I thought that would be sexy. Alas, I didn't get my fight scene, so I resolved it in this fic. Because I'm twisted. **

***When I walked into the theatre to watch TGH, I was worried that the actor that played Gale was much more handsome than Peeta. I was like, how is Katniss supposed to like this Peeta dude. I walked out of the movie later with a super charged crush on Joshua Hutcherson. **

***Sorry I pulled a Suzanne in Chapter 13. The point I'm trying to make is that it's sad that sometimes that it takes a death of a loved one to look past the rough patches and the indifferences, and bring a family together, when it's too late.**

* * *

**Fields of Gold lyrics -by Sting**

**_You'll remember me when the west wind moves Upon the fields of barley. You'll forget the sun in his jealous sky As we walk in the fields of gold._**  
**_So she took her love for her to gaze awhile Upon the fields of barley. In his arms she fell as her hair came down Among the fields of gold._**  
**_Will you stay with me, will you be my love Among the fields of barley? We'll forget the sun in his jealous sky As we lie in fields of gold._**  
**_See the west wind move like a lover so, Upon the fields of barley. Feel her body rise when you kiss her mouth Among the fields of gold._**

**_I never made promises lightly, And there have been some that I've broken_**  
**_But I swear in the days still left We'll walk in the fields of gold._**

**_Many years have passed since those summer days Among the fields of barley. See the children run as the sun goes down Among the fields of gold._**  
**_You'll remember me when the west wind moves Upon the fields of barley. You can tell the sun in his jealous sky When we walked in the fields of gold._**


End file.
